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Early treatment improves behavior, communication and brain function in children with autism

When given early treatment, children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) made significant improvements in behavior, communication, and most strikingly, brain function, Yale School of Medicine researchers report in a new study.

7 Nov 2012

Brain bleeds in premature babies: an interview with Edward Ahn

Premature babies are born during their third trimester and they are vulnerable to having brain bleeds because their brains are not completely developed. There are some fragile blood vessels that are present in every developing infant, but when the babies are born early, these blood vessels can be subject to changes in blood pressure and changes in breathing patterns and, due to their fragility, they can develop a hemorrhage.

6 Nov 2012

Genetic testing valuable in determining etiology for childhood hearing loss

Genetic testing for a certain mutation in pediatric patients is valuable in determining a cause for unexplained hearing loss, according to a study in the November 2012 issue of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery.

6 Nov 2012

Testosterone exposure early in life can have lasting impact on brain function and behavior

New findings led by Dr. Michael Lombardo, Prof. Simon Baron-Cohen and colleagues at the University of Cambridge indicate that testosterone levels early in fetal development influence later sensitivity of brain regions related to reward processing and affect an individual's susceptibility to engage in behavior, that in extremes, are related to several neuropsychiatric conditions that asymmetrically affect one sex more than the other.

6 Nov 2012

Chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome anxiety linked to poorer adaptive behaviors

UC Davis researchers have found that for children with the genetic disorder known as chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome anxiety -- but not intelligence -- is linked to poorer adaptive behaviors, such as self-care and communication skills, that affect daily life. The developmental syndrome, which is associated with a constellation of physical, cognitive and psychiatric problems, usually is apparent at birth or early childhood, and leads to lifelong challenges.

6 Nov 2012

Reducing malnutrition among refugees in South Sudan

"A combined effort by health, water, sanitation and nutrition partners, including the World Food Programme (WFP), to reduce alarming malnutrition rates amongst Sudanese refugees who have settled in Maban County of South Sudan, is beginning to yield fruit," WFP reports in an article on its webpage, adding, "Parents say they have seen dramatic improvements in their children's health."

6 Nov 2012

More calories consumed when eating out

Children and adolescents consume more calories and soda and have poorer nutrient-intake on days they eat at either fast-food or full-service restaurants, as compared to days they eat meals at -- or from -- home.

6 Nov 2012

Cartoons effectively reduce preoperative anxiety in children

Letting children watch a favorite cartoon is an effective and safe way to reduce anxiety before anesthesia and surgery, concludes a study in the November issue of Anesthesia & Analgesia, official journal of the International Anesthesia Research Society (IARS).

6 Nov 2012

Aid workers warn child nutrition reaching emergency levels in northern Mali

"Aid workers say child malnutrition is reaching emergency levels in northern Mali, which has been under the control of armed militant groups since April," VOA News reports. "Brussels-based aid organization Medecins du Monde, or Doctors of the World, says malnutrition rates among children under the age of five in occupied northern Mali are reaching 'alarming levels,'" the news service writes.

6 Nov 2012

Nationwide standard on booster seat laws would save children’s lives

A new study by researchers in Boston Children's Hospital's Division of Emergency Medicine indicates that a nationwide standard on booster seat laws for children 4 feet 9 inches and shorter, or up to 8 years old, would save lives.

6 Nov 2012

ICD use can combat sudden death in pediatric patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy

A multicenter registry has demonstrated that the use of implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) to combat sudden cardiac death in high-risk pediatric patients suffering from hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). The study is being presented Nov. 5 at the 2012 Scientific Sessions of the American Heart Association (AHA) in Los Angeles.

6 Nov 2012

Adenovirus detection not uncommon among children with Kawasaki disease

Clinicians should take caution when diagnosing a child who has a high fever and whose tests show evidence of adenovirus, and not assume the virus is responsible for Kawasaki-like symptoms. According to a new study from Nationwide Children's Hospital appearing in Clinical Infectious Diseases, adenovirus detection is not uncommon among children with Kawasaki disease.

5 Nov 2012

Rush’s AARTS program to improve quality of life of children and adults with autism

The Chicago region's first comprehensive center serving patients from childhood into young adulthood with autism spectrum disorders has been established at Rush University Medical Center.

4 Nov 2012

Mobile health care centers in India reduce infant and maternal mortality

Infant mortality has fallen by half, and the number of women who died from complications during pregnancy and childbirth by three-quarters. This is the result of a four-year health care project in one of India's poorest districts.

4 Nov 2012

WHO reports on global diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis vaccination efforts

"Four in five children (83 percent) worldwide received the recommended three doses of diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (DTP) vaccine during infancy in 2011, according to new data released in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report and in the WHO Weekly Epidemiological Record (WER)," a WHO media note reports.

3 Nov 2012

New information related to kidney transplantation

Three studies presented during the American Society of Nephrology's Annual Kidney Week provide new information related to kidney transplantation—specifically, the post-transplant health of kidney donors and the racial disparities faced by children in need of transplants.

3 Nov 2012

Autism interventions are supported by varying levels of evidence, reveals new RAND study

Interventions designed to improve core deficits in children with autism spectrum disorders are supported by varying levels of evidence, highlighting the need for well-designed studies to better evaluate the interventions, according to a new RAND Corporation study.

3 Nov 2012

Study shows anxiety-promoting parental behaviors affect children

Parents with social anxiety disorder are more likely than parents with other forms of anxiety to engage in behaviors that put their children at high risk for developing angst of their own, according to a small study of parent-child pairs conducted at Johns Hopkins Children's Center.

3 Nov 2012

Toilet training method not related to urinary accidents in children

Parents: stop worrying about which toilet training method to use - where urinary accidents in children are concerned, it doesn't matter. This clearly-stated message, published today in Clinical Pediatrics by physician researchers from the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ)-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and The Bristol-Myers Squibb Children's Hospital at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, emphasizes that the method of training chosen by parents is not the cause of urinary accidents in children.

3 Nov 2012

Researchers combine robotics, machine learning and brain imaging to assist infants with CP

Learning to crawl comes naturally for most infants, but those with cerebral palsy lack the muscle strength and coordination to perform the 25 individual movements required for crawling. With a $1.135 million, three-year grant from the National Science Foundation's National Robotics Initiative, University of Oklahoma researchers from the Norman and Health Sciences Center campuses are combining robotics, machine learning and brain imaging to assist infants with CP with the challenging, life-altering skill.

2 Nov 2012