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IRIN examines improvements in maternal, infant mortality indicators in Myanmar

IRIN examines maternal and child health in "conflict-afflicted eastern Myanmar, [where] until recently obstetric care was often crude, unsterile and dangerous for both mother and child, health experts say." To address high rates of maternal and infant mortality in the region, "in 2005 several CBOs, the Center for Public Health and Human Rights at Johns Hopkins University, and the Global Health Access Program launched the Mobile Obstetric Medics (MOM) project -- dramatically boosting access to care," IRIN writes.

20 Oct 2011

USAID, Kimberly-Clark announce partnership to improve maternal, child health in Andean region

USAID and Kimberly-Clark Corporation, a manufacturer of health and hygiene products, on Tuesday announced "they will work together to improve maternal and child health in the Andean region, starting in Colombia and Ecuador," according to a USAID press release.

20 Oct 2011

Experimental vaccine halves risk of malaria in African children, results of large clinical trial suggest

"An experimental vaccine from GlaxoSmithKline halved the risk of African children getting malaria in a major clinical trial, making it likely to become the world's first shot against the deadly disease," according to a study "presented at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's Malaria Forum conference in Seattle and published simultaneously in the New England Journal of Medicine" on Tuesday, Reuters reports.

20 Oct 2011

Pesticides, pollutants increase risk of spina bifida and anencephaly in rural China

Pesticides and pollutants are related to an alarming 450 percent increase in the risk of spina bifida and anencephaly in rural China, according to scientists at The University of Texas at Austin and Peking University.

20 Oct 2011

Breastfeeding during minor procedures mitigates pain in preterm neonates

Poorly managed pain in the neonatal intensive care unit has serious short- and long-term consequences, causing physiological and behavioral instability in preterm infants and long-term changes in their pain sensitivity, stress arousal systems, and developing brains. In a study published in the November issue of PAIN-, researchers report that breastfeeding during minor procedures mitigated pain in preterm neonates with mature breastfeeding behaviors.

19 Oct 2011

PACBIS tool may help identify pre-surgical behaviors in parents, children

A clinical study presented at ANESTHESIOLOGY 2011 highlighted a behavioral assessment tool that may help anesthesia providers identify pre-surgical behaviors in parents and children that lead to maladaptive behaviors in children after surgery.

19 Oct 2011

Cholera claims nearly 200 lives in Somalia over 24-hour period

"During the past 24 hours, cholera has claimed the lives of nearly 200 women and children in famine-stricken Somalia," a Press TV correspondent in Mogadishu reported on Sunday. "More than 800 children suffering from the disease in refugee camps were reportedly transported to medical centers in south Mogadishu," the news service writes, adding, "As the number of sick is on the rise, doctors are facing a shortage of medicine."

19 Oct 2011

China vaccinates 4.5M children, young adults against polio after outbreak

"China vaccinated 4.5 million children and young adults over the last five weeks in the western region of Xinjiang in a fight against polio after the disease paralyzed 17 people and killed one of them, the World Health Organization said," according to Reuters.

19 Oct 2011

American Academy of Pediatrics expands guidelines on safe sleep for babies

Since the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommended all babies should be placed on their backs to sleep in 1992, deaths from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome have declined dramatically. But sleep-related deaths from other causes, including suffocation, entrapment and asphyxia, have increased.

19 Oct 2011

IAN survey to study impact of bullying on children with ASD

Today, the Interactive Autism Network (IAN Project) launches a national survey to study the impact of bullying on children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Bullying, a pervasive problem among youth, has attracted the national spotlight in recent months because of the lasting, and sometimes tragic, effects on children and teenagers across the country.

19 Oct 2011

New form of respiratory distress syndrome in newborn mice

A discovery by scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies might explain why some premature infants fail to respond to existing treatments for a deadly respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) and offers clues for new ways to treat the breathing disorder.

19 Oct 2011

Young adults born prematurely show multiple biological signs of risks to future health

Young adults who were born prematurely show multiple biological signs of risks to future health, research from Imperial College London has found. The scientists, reporting their findings tomorrow in the journal Pediatric Research, say that the research indicates that urgent work is now needed to monitor preterm babies into adulthood to improve the detection of early signs of disease.

19 Oct 2011

RTS,S vaccine reduces risk of severe malaria in African children

First results from a large-scale Phase III trial of RTS,S, published online today in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), show the malaria vaccine candidate to provide young African children with significant protection against clinical and severe malaria with an acceptable safety and tolerability profile.

19 Oct 2011

Autism in low birth weight babies five times more common: Study

Roughly 3% of U.S. newborns fall into the low-weight category used by the researchers (2,000 grams or less). Babies of this size are typically born prematurely, though certain pregnancy complications can also cause low birth weight in full-term babies.

18 Oct 2011

First study ever to instrument child football helmets

Virginia Tech released today results from the first study ever to instrument child football helmets. Youth football helmets are currently designed to the same standards as adult helmets, even though little is known about how child football players impact their heads.

18 Oct 2011

Three likely scenarios that precede drowning of young children in an at-home pool

Very young children who live in a home with a swimming pool are at risk of drowning, a leading cause of injury death among toddlers. A study abstract presented Monday, Oct. 17, at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in Boston identifies three likely scenarios that precede the drowning of a very young child (ages 1 to 4) in an at-home swimming pool.

18 Oct 2011

One in four kindergarten children have difficulty in distinguishing medicine and candy

More than one in four kindergarten children, and one in five teachers, had difficulty distinguishing between medicine and candy in new research conducted by two, now seventh-grade students, who presented their findings on Monday, Oct. 17, at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in Boston.

18 Oct 2011

Link between breastfeeding and long-term sleep issues

While breastfed babies initially awaken more during the night for feedings, their sleep patterns -- falling asleep, staying asleep and total sleep time -- stabilize in later infancy and become comparable to non-breastfed babies, according to an abstract presented Monday, Oct. 17, at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in Boston.

18 Oct 2011

Research reinforces need for sleeping awareness campaigns to reduce SIDS

New research reinforces the need for continued public education programs that encourage parents to place their infants to sleep in the supine (back) position in a safe crib or bassinet, to prevent an estimated 4,600 annual Sudden Unintended Infant Deaths (SUID), of which 50 percent are classified as Sudden Death Syndrome.

18 Oct 2011

New DNA-based prenatal blood test can identify pregnancy with Down syndrome

A new DNA-based prenatal blood test that can strikingly reduce the number of risky diagnostic procedures needed to identify a pregnancy with Down syndrome is ready to be introduced into clinical practice.

18 Oct 2011