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Child cancer survival: an interview with Prof Kathy Pritchard-Jones, University College London

Back in the early 1960s, just before chemotherapy really started to be used, only about 30% of children survived cancer. That was mainly because they had cancers that were amenable to surgery.

24 Jul 2013

State highlights: DOJ sues Fla. over keeping children in nursing homes

The U.S. Justice Department filed a lawsuit against Florida on Monday, accusing the state of unnecessarily institutionalizing about 200 disabled children in nursing homes and cutting services that would allow them to receive care at home (7/22).

24 Jul 2013

LUHS pediatrician shares tips for getting the most out of doctor visits

It's nearing the end of summer and trying to squeeze in that school physical can be difficult. Everyone is strapped for time, especially busy moms and dads. From sporting events to music rehearsals or just acting as a chauffer, it's hard to get everything in. The juggling act becomes even more stressful when a child gets sick. Still, kids' health is a priority.

24 Jul 2013

Baylor Research Institute, Novartis sign license agreement for canakinumab

Baylor Research Institute, the research arm of Baylor Health Care System, announced that it has signed an agreement with Novartis to non-exclusively license Baylor's patents pertaining to the treatment of Systemic Onset Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis using interleukin-1 beta antagonists.

24 Jul 2013

Study examines incidence rates of type l diabetes in Finnish children

"The incidence of type l diabetes, one of the most prevalent chronic diseases in children, has increased worldwide," write Valma Harjutsalo, Ph.D., of the Diabetes Prevention Unit, Helsinki, Finland, and colleagues, who conducted a study to examine the incidence rates of T1D between 2006 and 2011 in Finnish children younger than 15 years as well as the 32-year trend (1980-2011).

24 Jul 2013

Federal judge blocks North Dakota fetal heartbeat abortion law

The ban would prevent abortions in that state after a fetal heartbeat could be detected -- as early as six weeks into pregnancy, in some cases.

24 Jul 2013

NIH study seeks genetic links to answer the 'Why?' of unexplained disorders

Even in the absence of a ready solution, knowing why a child faces physical, emotional and intellectual challenges is helpful to physicians and families. Researchers at the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology are using high throughput genomic sequencing to meet major diagnostic needs for childhood genetic disorders through a multi-year grant potentially totaling more than $7.6 million from the National Institutes of Health.

24 Jul 2013

Loyola sports medicine physician's advice for parents of high school athletes: Don't let them play football

Prominent sports medicine physician Dr. Pietro Tonino of Loyola University Medical Center has some blunt advice for parents of high school athletes who want to play football this fall: Don't let them do it.

23 Jul 2013

Researchers develop microbial washing technique to decontaminate fetal tissues

The use of central nervous system fetal tissues derived from routine elective abortions to provide stem cells for transplantation procedures aimed at restoring damage done by neurodegenerative diseases is an established therapy.

23 Jul 2013

Breastfed children less likely to develop ADHD later in life

We know that breastfeeding has a positive impact on child development and health -including protection against illness. Now researchers from Tel Aviv University have shown that breastfeeding could also help protect against Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), the most commonly diagnosed neurobehavioral disorder in children and adolescents.

23 Jul 2013

Initial polytherapy effectively improves prognosis of infantile spasms

Adrenocorticotropic hormone is recommended worldwide as an initial therapy for infantile spasms. However, infantile spasms in about 50% of children cannot be fully controlled by adrenocorticotropic hormone monotherapy, seizures recur in 33% of patients who initially respond to adrenocorticotropic hormone monotherapy, and side effects are relatively common during adrenocorticotropic hormone treatment.

22 Jul 2013

Cedars-Sinai investigator awarded grant to study cell metabolism in childhood sarcomas

Sandra Orsulic, PhD, director of Women's Cancer Biology in the Women's Cancer Program at the Cedars-Sinai Samuel Oschin Comprehensive Cancer Institute, was awarded a $250,000 grant from Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation to study cell metabolism in childhood sarcomas.

22 Jul 2013

Children with unilateral hearing loss are more likely to struggle in school

Children born with a complete absence of the external ear canal, even if only one ear is affected, are more likely than their peers to struggle in school, according to new research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

20 Jul 2013

Infants who spend nights away from caregivers have more insecure attachments

Babies have an innate biological need to be attached to caregivers, usually their parents. But what happens when babies spend a night or more per week away from a primary caregiver, as increasingly happens in cases where the parents share custody, but do not live together?

20 Jul 2013

Researchers identify mechanism behind pediatric solid tumors

Most of the time, it takes decades of accumulating genetic errors for a tumor to develop. While this explains the general occurrence of cancer in adults, it leaves a gap in understanding of the cause of pediatric tumors.

20 Jul 2013

Ketamine anesthesia drug can cause learning and memory disorders in children

Recent studies have found that anesthesia drugs have neurotoxicity on the developing neurons, causing learning and memory disorders and behavioral abnormalities. Ketamine is commonly used in pediatric anesthesia.

20 Jul 2013

Alcohol consumption during pregnancy has detrimental effects on fetal central nervous development

Maternal alcohol consumption during pregnancy has detrimental effects on fetal central nervous system development. Maternal alcohol consumption prior to and during pregnancy significantly affects cognitive functions in offspring, which may be related to changes in cyclin-dependent kinase 5 because it is associated with modulation of synaptic plasticity and impaired learning and memory.

20 Jul 2013

EHRA, AEPC release joint consensus statement on treatment of paediatric arrhythmias

A joint consensus statement on the treatment of paediatric arrhythmias has been released by the European Heart Rhythm Association of the European Society of Cardiology and the Association for European Paediatric and Congenital Cardiology.

19 Jul 2013

State highlights: D.C. health care providers continue wait for payments; Ga. plans Medicaid managed care for kids; Hospital chain seeks insurer license in Calif.

A selection of health policy stories from Virginia, the District of Columbia, California, Wisconsin, Georgia, South Carolina, Pennsylvania and Washington.

19 Jul 2013

Oxytocin may not improve symptoms of children with autism, study finds

The so-called trust hormone, oxytocin, may not improve the symptoms of children with autism, a large study led by researchers at the University of New South Wales has found.

19 Jul 2013