Pediatrics News and Research

Latest Pediatrics News and Research

Rochester General Hospital Research Institute awarded $7M for Prevnar 13 study of ear infections in children

The Rochester General Hospital Research Institute has been awarded a $7.1 million grant to study the effectiveness of a new vaccine on the bacteria that cause ear infections in children. Michael E. Pichichero MD, Director of the Research Institute, has been named Principal Investigator of the five year study which will follow children who receive the Prevnar 13 vaccine. The vaccine is manufactured by Pfizer Vaccine Research of Collegeville, Pennsylvania which is funding the grant.

6 Oct 2010

Investigations on child maltreatment may not improve modifiable risk factors: CPS

Household investigations for suspected child maltreatment by Child Protective Services may not be associated with improvements in common, modifiable risk factors including social support, family functioning, poverty and others, according to a report in the October issue of Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

6 Oct 2010

SJMHS and IHA announce strategic merger to develop new integrated health network

Saint Joseph Mercy Health System (SJMHS) and IHA, the region's leading physician group practice, both of Ann Arbor, Mich., today announced a strategic merger with the goal of developing a new integrated health network. The merger is expected to be effective on or before December 31, at which time IHA will be a member of SJMHS and will initially serve as the integrated physician enterprise for these St. Joseph Mercy Hospital markets: Washtenaw, Livingston and portions of western Wayne and south western Oakland counties.

6 Oct 2010

Novel invasive surgery for children with scoliosis may eliminate need for spinal fusion

A novel minimally invasive surgery for young children living with a difficult-to-treat progressive form of scoliosis, known as juvenile idiopathic scoliosis, may eliminate the need for spinal fusion later in adolescence, according to new research by surgeons from Children's Mercy Hospitals and Clinics in Kansas City, Mo. The study was presented at the American Academy of Pediatrics National Conference and Exhibition in San Francisco.

6 Oct 2010

NSSHB study provides update on contemporary Americans' sexual behaviors

Findings from the largest nationally representative study of sexual and sexual-health behaviors ever fielded, conducted by Indiana University sexual health researchers, provides an updated and much needed snapshot of contemporary Americans' sexual behaviors, including a description of more than 40 combinations of sexual acts that people perform during sexual events, patterns of condom use by adolescents and adults, and the percentage of Americans participating in same-sex encounters.

5 Oct 2010

Interactive gaming devices cause injuries

Interactive gaming devices can cause a broad range of injuries, from abrasions and sprains to shoulder, ankle and foot injuries, according to research presented Monday, Oct. 4, at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in San Francisco.

5 Oct 2010

International experts to discuss effect of diet on children's mental and behavioral development

Can diet affect our children's long-term mental and behavioural development. This question will be addressed by a number of international leading experts on child nutrition next 6th of October in York, at a public event organized within the 7th Framework Programme Nutrimenthe, entitled "Effect of diet on the mental performance of children".

5 Oct 2010

Telemedicine helps in early diagnosis and treatment of pediatric heart problems

A new study by researchers from Children's Mercy Hospitals and Clinics in Kansas City, Mo., found that rapid electronic review of children's heart images by specialists nearly 200 miles away allowed for earlier diagnosis and treatment of potentially serious pediatric heart problems. The study was presented at the American Academy of Pediatrics National Conference and Exhibition in San Francisco.

5 Oct 2010

Black mothers less likely to initiate and continue breastfeeding: Study

While more American mothers are breastfeeding today, non-Hispanic Black/African American women are less likely to initiate and continue breastfeeding, primarily due to a lack of desire and lack of self-efficacy, according to research presented Monday, Oct. 4, at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in San Francisco.

5 Oct 2010

Intervention program prevents smoking relapse, increases breastfeeding duration

New mothers who smoke are less likely to breastfeed. But those who quit smoking during or just prior to becoming pregnant were significantly more likely to remain smoke free and continue breastfeeding if they received support and encouragement during the first eight weeks following child birth, according to a study presented Monday, Oct. 4, at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in San Francisco.

5 Oct 2010

Dangers of not vaccinating children

Deadly diseases are making a comeback. Pertussis, or whooping cough, has killed nine infants this year in California, and outbreaks of measles and Hib meningitis have struck U.S. communities in the past three years.

5 Oct 2010

Pre-teen babysitter strengths and weaknesses

Nearly all (98 percent) of 11- to 13-year-old babysitters know who to contact in the event of an intruder or if a child is sick or injured (96 percent) or poisoned (85 percent), according to research presented Sunday, Oct. 3, at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in San Francisco. However, 40 percent of younger babysitters reported that they had left children unattended while babysitting, and 20 percent opened the door to strangers.

5 Oct 2010

Maternal influenza vaccination prevents flu in infants

Babies whose mothers who receive influenza vaccines while pregnant appear less likely to be infected with flu or hospitalized for respiratory illnesses in their first six months of life, according to a report posted online today that will appear in the February 2011 print issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

5 Oct 2010

Depressed pregnant women at increased risk of delivering preterm birth and low-birth weight infants

Clinical depression puts pregnant women at increased risk of delivering prematurely and of giving birth to below-normal weight infants, according to a report published Oct. 4 in the Archives of General Psychiatry.

5 Oct 2010

Human growth hormone can treat cystic fibrosis symptoms

Human growth hormone can be used successfully to treat some symptoms of cystic fibrosis, but its impact on the disease itself remains unknown, according to a new report funded by HHS' Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ).

5 Oct 2010

X-rays increase risk of developing childhood leukemia

Diagnostic X-rays may increase the risk of developing childhood leukemia, according to a new study by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley's School of Public Health.

4 Oct 2010

IBM employee-wellness program shows some success for kids

Reuters: "In 2008, IBM launched an Internet-based 'children's rebate program' that let employees and their families choose from a selection of goals revolving around healthy eating, group physical activity, reduced 'screen time' and positive parental role-modeling. A $150 check was offered as incentive to complete the 12-week program. … More than 22,000 employees signed on to participate, representing about half of all employees with children covered by IBM's health plan." About 12,000 completed the program and received the rebate.

4 Oct 2010

Non-reversible gastric bypass surgery linked to increased risk of fetal neural tube defects

An increasing number of obese adolescents, particularly females, are undergoing gastric bypass surgery. Yet a case study presented Sunday, Oct. 3, at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in San Francisco, highlights the possible link between gastric bypass surgery in adolescent girls and an increased risk for neural tube defects, which can lead to varying degrees of disability such as paralysis and mental retardation due to damage to the nervous system, in their future children.

4 Oct 2010

Most toddlers able to reach kitchen countertops

Most toddlers can reach as high as a kitchen countertop, putting them at risk for severe burns from hot liquids, according to research presented Sunday, Oct. 3, 2010, at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in San Francisco.

4 Oct 2010

Increase in unemployment rate linked to child maltreatment

The stresses of poverty have long been associated with child abuse and neglect. In a study presented Sunday, Oct. 3, at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in San Francisco, researchers directly linked an increased unemployment rate to child maltreatment one year later.

4 Oct 2010