Pediatrics

Pediatrics is the branch of medicine that deals with the medical care of infants, children, and adolescents. The age limit of such patients ranges from birth to 18. In countries where the age of majority is 18, this age limit may be from birth to age 17 (such as in Canada). A medical practitioner who specializes in this area is known as a pediatrician.

What is Pediatrics?

Pediatrics is the branch of medicine dealing with the health and medical care of infants, children, and adolescents from birth up to the age of 18. The word “paediatrics” means “healer of children”; they are derived from two Greek words: (pais = child) and (iatros = doctor or healer). Paediatrics is a relatively new medical specialty, developing only in the mid-19th century. Abraham Jacobi (1830–1919) is known as the father of paediatrics.

Effects of Passive Smoking on Children's Health

A Brief History of Pediatrics

Child and Adolescent Sports Injuries

Pediatrician: Role, Education, Training, Subspecialties

Pediatrics Training

Subspecialties of Pediatrics

Infections in Childhood

Importance of Sensory Stimulation for Babies

How Fast Food Affects Children's Health

Pediatric Skin Conditions

Supporting Children with Mental Health Disorders

See more featured articles »

Mental Health Disorders and Children

Latest Pediatrics News and Research

Researchers provide new insights into how exercise helps lose weight

Researchers at Baylor College of Medicine, Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute (Duncan NRI) at Texas Children's Hospital, Stanford University School of Medicine and collaborating institutions provide new insights into how exercise helps lose weight.

16 Sep 2025

Integrated pediatric behavioral health care reduces symptoms in children

Research led by the Transforming and Expanding Access to Mental Health Care Universally in Pediatrics (TEAM UP) Scaling and Sustainability Center of Boston Medical Center (BMC) finds that children who receive behavioral health services delivered through the TEAM UP Model™ of integrated behavioral health care have fewer behavioral health symptoms.

16 Sep 2025

Decline in pediatric rescue breathing increased deaths during the pandemic

Cardiac arrest happens when the heart stops pumping blood properly, cutting off oxygen to the brain and other vital organs.

16 Sep 2025

Neonatal male circumcision rates decline in the United States despite health benefits

Scientific evidence supporting the health benefits of male circumcision - surgical removal of the foreskin from the penis - dates back hundreds of years to observations made by physicians of their circumcised patients.

16 Sep 2025

Buprenorphine treatment produces greatest health gains and cost savings for mothers and infants

Over the last 20 years, substance use-related deaths have more than doubled for women of reproductive age. Overdose deaths are now a leading cause of maternal mortality in the U.S., and in some states, the leading cause.

11 Sep 2025

Early parent-focused programs fail to reduce childhood obesity by age two

Existing approaches to parent-focused behavioral programs delivered up to 12 months of age which aim to combat childhood obesity are insufficient to improve body mass index (BMI) at approximately two years of age, according to the largest study to date on the topic published in The Lancet.

10 Sep 2025

Research warns of lasting health impacts from muscle loss in young cancer patients

New research from the Exercise Medicine Research Institute at Edith Cowan University (ECU) has highlighted that children undergoing cancer treatment often lose skeletal muscle at a time when they should be rapidly gaining it, a loss that could increase treatment complications and raise the risk of long-term health problems.

10 Sep 2025

Specific microbial changes linked to poor growth in children

Malnutrition is responsible for more than half of all deaths in children under the age of five worldwide.

10 Sep 2025

RFK Jr. said ‘everybody can get’ a covid vaccine. Is that true?

When health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. testified before the Senate Finance Committee on Sept. 4, several senators criticized him for restricting the covid-19 shots after promising in November he wouldn't “take away anybody's vaccines.”

10 Sep 2025

Lice pose no health threat, yet some parents push back on rules to allow affected kids in class

Any evidence of lice was once a reason for immediate dismissal from school, not to return until the student's head was lice-free.

10 Sep 2025

Kids with fluctuating gut microbiome show poorer growth

Malnutrition is a leading cause of death in children under age 5, and nearly 150 million children globally under this age have stunted growth from lack of nutrition.

9 Sep 2025

Medicaid-insured kids with anorexia face longer hospital stays

Medicaid-insured kids with anorexia hospitalized for medical stabilization remain in hospital longer than peers with private insurance despite similar illness severity, according to a study from Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago published in the Journal of Eating Disorders.

9 Sep 2025

Core sugars in breast milk fuel gut and brain health beyond 12 months

Researchers reviewed 13 studies of human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) through 24 months of breastfeeding, analyzing 4,786 samples. Six “core” HMOs remained dominant, with total concentrations plateauing after 12 months and evidence suggesting persistence into the second year.

8 Sep 2025

Childhood blood pressure predicts cardiovascular mortality risk in adulthood

Blood pressure matters at all ages. Children with higher blood pressure at age 7 may be at an increased risk of dying of cardiovascular disease by their mid-50s, according to preliminary research presented at the American Heart Association's Hypertension Scientific Sessions 2025.

8 Sep 2025

New technology embeds unique genetic identifiers in engineered cells

Genetically engineered cell lines used in biomedical research have long been prone to misidentification and unauthorized use, wasting billions of dollars each year and jeopardizing critical scientific discoveries.

5 Sep 2025

New MRI correction method reveals brain structure differences in children with ADHD

Over five percent of children and adolescents are diagnosed with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) globally.

5 Sep 2025

Dental care gaps affect children with sickle cell disease in Michigan

Children with sickle cell disease are more likely to have dental problems - but fewer than half of those covered by Michigan Medicaid got dental care in 2022, according to a new study.

3 Sep 2025

Do pediatricians recommend vaccines to make a profit? There’s not much money in it

It makes sense to approach some marketing efforts with skepticism. Scams, deepfakes, and deceptive social media posts are common, with people you don't know seeking to profit from your behavior.

3 Sep 2025

At CDC, worries mount that agency has taken anti-science turn

Public health and access to lifesaving vaccines are on the line in a high-stakes leadership battle at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

3 Sep 2025

Advances in ultrasound improve prenatal detection of congenital heart disease

A new study published in The Annals of Thoracic Surgery, the journal from The Society of Thoracic Surgeons, suggests that prenatal detection of congenital heart disease (CHD) has improved in recent years largely due to advances in ultrasound screening practices.

2 Sep 2025