Pediatrics News and Research

Latest Pediatrics News and Research

Key factor in brain development revealed, offers insight into lissencephaly

In the earliest days of brain development, the brain's first cells - neuroepithelial stem cells - divide continuously, producing a population of cells that eventually evolves into the various cells of the fully formed brain.

28 Mar 2008

New hope for children with bilateral Wilms tumors

Physicians at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital have demonstrated that children with bilateral Wilms tumor, a cancer of the kidneys, can retain normal function in both kidneys by undergoing a procedure called bilateral nephron-sparing surgery, even when preoperative scans suggest that the tumors are inoperable.

25 Mar 2008

GPS enabled cell phones to track risky behaviour in teens

How can researchers track where teens go when not in or near home or school to see if this movement has an impact on health-related behavior such as smoking or sexual activity? The answer is through that ubiquitous teen accessory - the cell phone.

25 Mar 2008

REST protein protects embryonic stem cells' versatility and self-renewal

A protein known as REST blocks the expression of a microRNA that prevents embryonic stem cells from reproducing themselves and causes them to differentiate into specific cell types, scientists at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center report in the journal Nature.

25 Mar 2008

Deadly genetic disease prevented before birth in zebrafish with genetic patch

By injecting a customized "genetic patch" into early stage fish embryos, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis were able to correct a genetic mutation so the embryos developed normally.

24 Mar 2008

Circumcision does not protect men from common STDs

According to new research, though male circumcision protects men from HIV, it does not protect them against other common sexually transmitted infections such as chlamydia, genital warts and genital herpes.

21 Mar 2008

Young girls who are hyperactive face problems as adults

Young girls who are hyperactive are more likely to get hooked on smoking, under-perform in school or jobs and gravitate towards mentally abusive relationships as adults, according to a joint study by researchers from the Université de Montréal and the University College London (UCL).

20 Mar 2008

Parental observations and perceptions important in detecting sleep problems in children

A new study from the University of Rochester has found that parental observations and perceptions of their childrens' sleep habits are a valuable supplement to objective laboratory tests in detecting obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

20 Mar 2008

Disruption of the Contactin 4 gene on chromosome 3 may be linked to autism spectrum disorder

Eli Hatchwell, M.D., Ph.D., Associate Professor of Pathology at Stony Brook University Medical Center, and colleagues have found that a disruption of the Contactin 4 gene on chromosome 3 may be linked to autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

20 Mar 2008

Russell Berrie Foundation donates $28 million for diabetes research

The Russell Berrie Foundation has donated $28 million to Columbia University Medical Center and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, as part of a focused effort to provide comprehensive care to diabetes patients while working, through concentrated research initiatives, toward a cure, the Medical Center gratefully announced today.

20 Mar 2008

Community-acquired staph pneumonia appears more common, including MRSA

Preliminary research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggests that community acquired pneumonia (CAP) caused by the Staphylococcus aureus bacterium may be more common than originally suspected, including that caused by antibiotic resistant strains.

20 Mar 2008

Poison prevention starts with respecting, inspecting medicines

Between tots' cough and cold medicines being pulled from store shelves, and a New York teenager dying from a muscle-cream overdose, the past year's scares are grounds for renewing a healthy fear for the products stowed in your medicine cabinet.

19 Mar 2008

Potential new neuronal tumor suppressor

In a G&D paper published online ahead of its April 1 print publication date, Dr. William Kaelin (Dana Farber Cancer Institute) and colleagues identify a potential new neuronal tumor suppressor.

18 Mar 2008

New technique detects early stages of colon cancer without a biopsy

Doctors may one day be able to detect early stages of colon cancer without a biopsy, using a new technique developed by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

18 Mar 2008

Advair reduces asthma-related hospitalization and emergency department visits

Advair Diskus (fluticasone propionate and salmeterol inhalation powder) was associated with fewer asthma-related hospitalizations and emergency department (ED) visits in pediatric patients when compared to the use of inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) alone, and use of Advair by pediatric and adult patients through the summer was associated with fewer hospitalizations and ED visits in the fall.

17 Mar 2008

Study confirms link between colds and ear infections

A new five-year study at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston confirms the suspected close link between the two most common diseases of young children: colds and ear infections.

14 Mar 2008

Long-term muscle improvements shown in gene therapy study in mice

Injecting a gene responsible for making a specific protein into a mouse that's used as a model for muscular dystrophy can lead to long-term improvements in the animal's muscle size and strength, a new study shows.

14 Mar 2008

Preschoolers benefit from daycare program to prevent obesity

A preschool-based intervention program helped prevent early trends toward obesity and instilled healthy eating habits in multi-ethnic 2- to 5-year-olds, according to a report presented at the American Heart Association's Conference on Nutrition, Physical Activity and Metabolism.

13 Mar 2008

Good news for people with glycogen storage disease type Ia

A gene therapy treatment that restores a missing liver enzyme in test animals could provide a cure for a rare metabolic disorder in humans, according to Duke University Medical Center researchers.

13 Mar 2008

Potential new gene therapy strategy for muscle-wasting diseases

Investigators in The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital have identified the role of a protein that could potentially lead to new clinical treatments to combat musculoskeletal diseases, including Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD).

11 Mar 2008