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Monthly Archives :

October 2015

Genetic Testing for Pediatric Epilepsy Can Be Complicated but Beneficial
 Genetic Testing for Pediatric Epilepsy Can Be Complicated but Beneficial 150 150 Gina Bericchia
By: Gina Bericchia

Application of genetic testing in pediatric epilepsy requires understanding of the advantages and limitations of testing modalities The use of genetic testing in pediatric epilepsy is complicated and the list of known epilepsy genes changes almost daily. The steps from a doctor initially evaluating a patient when they first demonstrate the symptoms of epilepsy to genetic diagnosis…

Better Care and Better Business
 Better Care and Better Business 150 150 Dave Ghose
By: Dave Ghose

The changing economics of health care are forcing hospitals to find solutions that are good for patients and for the bottom line. A puzzled neonatologist approached Richard McClead, MD, after he spoke at a conference in Boston. It was 2010, and Dr. McClead just finished detailing a new initiative at Nationwide Children’s Hospital to reduce the…

InSight: Restoring Normal Habits
 InSight: Restoring Normal Habits 471 285 Tiasha Letostak, PhD
By: Tiasha Letostak, PhD

SACRAL NERVE STIMULATION (SNS) is a new treatment that helps control urinary incontinence and fecal soiling. For some children, the nerves that control urination and bowel movements do not work correctly. The SNS unit consists of a small, safe battery and wire under the skin and sends signals to the sacral nerve. The signals help restore…

The Transfusion Evolution
 The Transfusion Evolution 576 367 Abbie Miller
By: Abbie Miller

The first successful open heart surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass was performed in 1953, but it wasn’t until the 1970s that these surgeries began to have high success rates — due in large part to the availability of fresh whole blood transfusions. However, fresh whole blood is difficult to attain. In response, blood component transfusions became…

Acetabular “Fleck” Sign Predictive of Labral Avulsion
 Acetabular “Fleck” Sign Predictive of Labral Avulsion 150 150 Abbie Miller
By: Abbie Miller

A “fleck” sign on the postreduction CT scan calls for high suspicion of labral pathology, even in cases of congruent closed reductions. Traumatic posterior hip dislocations and subluxations are typically treated with a closed reduction in pediatric patients. For patients who have a congruent hip reduction, the course of treatment often ends here. However, a new study…

A Practical Guide to Beginning Clinical Research
 A Practical Guide to Beginning Clinical Research 150 150 Tiasha Letostak, PhD
By: Tiasha Letostak, PhD

You wouldn’t travel to unknown destinations without a map or GPS, so why do clinical research without a plan? Here’s what you need to know to get started. Although the process for clinical research varies from institution to institution, the initial hurdles are often the same. From establishing clear protocols and outlining a detailed timeline…

Revealing the Secrets of Sepsis
 Revealing the Secrets of Sepsis 969 533 Abbie Miller
By: Abbie Miller
Illustration of NK Cells, T Cells, other immune cells floating across white background

Charting new territory in the understanding of how the immune system responds to sepsis. Two children are admitted to the hospital with sepsis. Both receive antibiotics and fluid resuscitation within the critical first hour. Why does one get better after the initial crisis while the other goes on to develop additional infections and multiple organ…

New Drug Advances Cystic Fibrosis Care
 New Drug Advances Cystic Fibrosis Care 150 150 Kevin Mayhood
By: Kevin Mayhood

Orkambi helps reduce infections and slows loss of lung function in some patients. Matt Hennessey knew he was on the experimental medicine and not a placebo just days after he began participating in a drug trial. He felt better. The addition of Orkambi pills to his daily routine was just another part of his maintenance…

Sickle Cell Disease: Global Disparities in Prevalance and Outcomes
 Sickle Cell Disease: Global Disparities in Prevalance and Outcomes 150 150 Abbie Miller
By: Abbie Miller

Unique challenges exist for people with sickle cell disease depending on where they live. An estimated 300,000 to 500,000 babies worldwide are born with sickle cell disease (SCD) each year. In Africa and India, where SCD is most prevalent, newborn testing is not performed, and many children with sickle cell disease die before they are…

Marijuana Exposure in Young Children
 Marijuana Exposure in Young Children 150 150 Kevin Mayhood
By: Kevin Mayhood

Researchers call for states to enact controls protecting all minors. When states legalize marijuana for medical or recreational use, the number of children younger than 6 exposed to the drug spikes that year and continues to rise annually, researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital report. And the number of children classified as victims of major exposures…

Suicides Rising Among Young Black Children, Rural Adolescents
 Suicides Rising Among Young Black Children, Rural Adolescents 150 150 Kevin Mayhood
By: Kevin Mayhood

Researchers are parsing data for trends and intervention targets. Researchers in central Ohio are gaining surprising insights they hope will lead to fewer children and adolescents committing suicide. While the suicide rate among white children 5 to 11 years old has declined since 1993, the rate among black children in the same age group has…

Hidden Victims
 Hidden Victims 150 150 Dave Ghose
By: Dave Ghose

Pediatricians acknowledge the emerging public health challenge of child commercial sexual exploitation. Public health officials no longer think that human trafficking is just a problem in the developing world. Increasing awareness has focused attention on the exploitation of children in the United States, showing that medical professionals can uncover problems in their own backyards. “I…

Severely Obese by Kindergarten: What’s a Doctor to Do?
 Severely Obese by Kindergarten: What’s a Doctor to Do? 150 150 Tiasha Letostak, PhD
By: Tiasha Letostak, PhD

The numbers of children and adolescents with severe obesity have continued to rise in the past 30 years, but only a few centers provide evidence-based care for severe childhood obesity. Childhood obesity affects 17 percent of children in the United States, and nearly one-third of these children are severely obese. The prevalence rates of children…

Methadone Weaning: The Role of the Pharmacist
 Methadone Weaning: The Role of the Pharmacist 150 150 Abbie Miller
By: Abbie Miller

Pharmacist-led methadone tapers are improving outcomes and reducing practice variation in pediatric intensive care units. In neonatal and pediatric intensive care units, opioid use is necessary for controlling pain and as an adjunct to sedation during mechanical ventilation. However, after as few as five days of use, approximately 50 percent of patients will experience withdrawal…

An Ethical Discussion of Parental Care Preference
 An Ethical Discussion of Parental Care Preference 150 150 Jan Arthur
By: Jan Arthur

Two infants with the same prognosis have parents with different preferences in terms of care. What should the medical team do? The article, “Two Infants, Same Prognosis, Different Parental Preferences,” published in the May 2015 issue of Pediatrics, presents a challenging ethical dilemma that brings into question the best interest standard and quality-of-life value judgments among…

Visualizing Gene Therapy for SMA
 Visualizing Gene Therapy for SMA 150 150 Abbie Miller
By: Abbie Miller

Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), a degenerative neuromuscular disease, is the most common genetic cause of death for infants. Virtually all children affected with SMA type 1 die by 2 years of age. In 2014, Jerry Mendell, MD, director of the Center for Gene Therapy in the Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, began a phase 1 gene transfer clinical…

Study Links Acute Infections With Later Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders
 Study Links Acute Infections With Later Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders 150 150 Jeb Phillips
By: Jeb Phillips

Link between acute infection in preschoolers and development of FGIDs in school-aged children could point toward interventions. Functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) are among the most common pediatric health conditions and often first appear in school-aged children. Acute diarrhea, also very common, often first manifests in preschoolers. A recently published prospective study shows that there may…

Delayed Umbilical Cord Clamping May Benefit Some High-Risk Newborns
 Delayed Umbilical Cord Clamping May Benefit Some High-Risk Newborns 150 150 Jeb Phillips
By: Jeb Phillips

Recent studies show the practice can offer circulatory advantages for infants born extremely preterm or with critical congenital heart disease. The practice of immediate or early umbilical cord clamping after birth has been the norm since research in the 1950s and 1960s showed that most blood volume for full term babies was achieved “within the…

Taking a Closer Look at the Relationship Between Type 2 Diabetes and Cardiovascular Disease
 Taking a Closer Look at the Relationship Between Type 2 Diabetes and Cardiovascular Disease 1024 575 Tiasha Letostak, PhD
By: Tiasha Letostak, PhD

A new study reveals surprising results regarding vascular stiffness of coronary microvessels in the presence of type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a chronic condition that affects the glucose metabolism as a result of insulin resistance. Patients with T2DM are two to four times more likely to have a heart attack than non-diabetic patients.…

Become a Myth Buster: Use Evidence-Based Medicine to Change Clinical Care
 Become a Myth Buster: Use Evidence-Based Medicine to Change Clinical Care 150 150 David Stukus, MD
By: David Stukus, MD

Medical myths abound, even among good doctors. How are medical myths perpetuated and how can they be stopped? When was the last time you took a step back and questioned your medical decision making? Why did you decide to prescribe that treatment at that dosage and for that exact duration? Was that test truly necessary…