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.

A Brief History of Pediatrics

Importance of Sensory Stimulation for Babies

Subspecialties of Pediatrics

Effects of Passive Smoking on Children's Health

How Fast Food Affects Children's Health

Pediatrician: Role, Education, Training, Subspecialties

Pediatrics Training

Supporting Children with Mental Health Disorders

Mental Health Disorders and Children

Infections in Childhood

Pediatric Skin Conditions

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Child and Adolescent Sports Injuries

Latest Pediatrics News and Research

Breakthrough in protein drug delivery could replace lengthy IV infusions

Patients with some cancers, autoimmune diseases, and metabolic disorders often endure time-consuming intravenous (IV) infusions to receive the best protein-based treatments available.

20 Aug 2025

Kennedy’s anti-vaccine strategy risks forcing shots off market, manufacturers warn

Dining under palm trees on a patio at Mar-a-Lago in December, President-elect Donald Trump reassured chief executives at pharmaceutical giants Eli Lilly and Pfizer that anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wouldn't be a radical choice to head the Department of Health and Human Services.

20 Aug 2025

School connectedness protects adolescents from depression linked to bullying

School connectedness buffers against depression symptoms associated with being a victim of peer bullying in adolescence, according to a study published in BMC Public Health.

19 Aug 2025

Texas Children’s successfully treats AADC deficiency using FDA-approved gene therapy

Texas Children's is pleased to announce that a three-year-old girl has been successfully treated with the first-ever FDA-approved gene therapy treatment for AADC deficiency.

19 Aug 2025

New SCAI statement provides guidance for transcatheter PDA closure in premature infants

The Society for Cardiovascular Angiography & Interventions (SCAI) has published a new position statement that provides best-practice guidance for the treatment of patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) using transcatheter occlusion (tcPDA) in premature infants.

18 Aug 2025

It’s almost flu season. Should you still get a shot, and will insurance cover it?

For parents of school-aged children, the fall to-do list can seem ever-growing. Buy school supplies. Fill out endless school forms.

18 Aug 2025

Cervicovaginal microbiome features predict severe chlamydia infection

A new study has identified markers that may predict whether a chlamydia infection is likely to ascend into the uterus and endometrium.

14 Aug 2025

Study shows economic benefits of continued COVID-19 vaccination

As the nation gears up for the rollout of an updated COVID-19 vaccine, a new study shows the economic benefits of continued broad vaccination in adults.

14 Aug 2025

Early use of risdiplam in newborns with SMA shows improvements in motor development

Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a rare genetic condition that causes progressive muscle weakness, which, when untreated, prevents infants with the most severe form from gaining motor development - never gaining the ability to sit - and typically leads to death before 2 years of age.

13 Aug 2025

Researchers find CFI deficiency alarmingly high in old order Amish

Researchers from Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and the Clinic for Special Children found that complement factor I (CFI) deficiency, an ultra-rare genetic disorder that can cause debilitating neuroinflammation, is more than 4500 times more likely to be found in individuals of Old Order Amish ancestry than the rest of the global population.

13 Aug 2025

Study identifies risk factors that increase risk of death in children with Fontan circulatory failure

A multi-center study has identified critical risk factors that increase the likelihood of death in children with a heart defect who are awaiting or have recently undergone heart transplantation, according to findings published in Circulation.

11 Aug 2025

Childhood and adolescent immunizations decline in Michigan, study shows

Routine childhood and adolescent immunizations declined in Michigan between 2017 and 2023, particularly among counties with lower household income and higher uninsurance rates, a new study suggests.

11 Aug 2025

Children show delayed exposure to respiratory viruses after COVID restrictions

COVID-19 prevention methods such as masking and social distancing also suppressed the circulation of common respiratory diseases, leaving young children lacking immunity to pathogens they otherwise would have been exposed to, a new multi-center clinical research study reveals.

6 Aug 2025

Excessive screen time linked to higher cardiometabolic risk in youth

Children and young adults who spend excessive hours glued to screens and electronic devices may have higher risks for cardiometabolic diseases, such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol and insulin resistance, according to new research published today in the Journal of the American Heart Association, an open-access, peer-reviewed journal of the American Heart Association.

6 Aug 2025

Understanding how long non-coding RNAs control gene expression in cancer

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNA) are a type of RNA molecule that do not carry instructions to make proteins. Instead, they influence how other genes are expressed.

5 Aug 2025

Flu virus triggers neuropsychiatric symptoms not the medication

For decades, medical professionals debated whether a common antiviral medication used to treat flu in children caused neuropsychiatric events or if the infection itself was the culprit.

4 Aug 2025

New treatment shows greater success in reducing binge eating among veterans

Researchers from University of California San Diego have found that a novel treatment called regulation of cues combined with behavioral weight loss (ROC+BWL) was more effective than standard cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in reducing binge eating among veterans with overweight or obesity.

4 Aug 2025

Regional differences found in newborn antibiotic use for suspected sepsis in Sweden

There are relatively large regional differences in Sweden in the proportion of newborns receiving antibiotics for suspected sepsis, according to a study at the University of Gothenburg.

4 Aug 2025

Study uncovers inflammatory pathways that contribute to asthma flare-ups in children

A recent multicenter clinical trial has uncovered inflammatory pathways that contribute to asthma flare-ups in children that occur despite treatment, according to findings published in JAMA Pediatrics.

1 Aug 2025

Characterization of antibodies targeting ASO modifications for intracellular trafficking

A new article in the peer-reviewed journal Nucleic Acid Therapeutics describes the characterization of antibodies targeting antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) phosphorothioate and 2'-methoxyehtyl modifications for intracellular trafficking and biodistribution studies.

1 Aug 2025