Infantile Spasms Respond Poorly to Common First-Line Treatment
Infantile Spasms Respond Poorly to Common First-Line Treatment 150 150 Jeb Phillips

Researchers recommend other initial treatments after finding that topiramate has a low rate of infantile spasms remission. The early and effective treatment of infantile spasms has been associated with better developmental outcomes for patients, while delayed remission of the infantile spasms may contribute to…

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Can You Ration Health Care in a Just Society?
Can You Ration Health Care in a Just Society? 150 150 Pedro Weisleder, MD, PhD

How the Clinical Effectiveness Model enables the provision of uncompromised, yet fiscally responsible, medical care Health care costs in the United States are an unsustainable expense. In 2014, the United States’ gross domestic product (GDP) was about $17 trillion, and of that, close to…

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Zoledronic Acid Safe and Effective for Use in Children and Young Adults, Study Shows
Zoledronic Acid Safe and Effective for Use in Children and Young Adults, Study Shows 150 150 Tiasha Letostak, PhD

The medication improves bone density and reduces fractures in patients with neuromuscular disorders that lead to paralysis. Children with neuromuscular disorders that lead to quadriplegia (paralysis of all four limbs) or paraplegia (paralysis of the legs and lower body) are at risk for low…

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Common Infections Associated With Childhood Stroke
Common Infections Associated With Childhood Stroke 150 150 Kevin Mayhood

Routine vaccinations appear to be protective. Minor infections, including the common cold, appear to trigger arterial ischemic stroke (AIS) in children, an international study shows. At the same time, a full or nearly full regimen of childhood immunizations appears to be protective in children.…

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Genetic Testing for Pediatric Epilepsy Can Be Complicated but Beneficial
Genetic Testing for Pediatric Epilepsy Can Be Complicated but Beneficial 150 150 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…

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Better Care and Better Business
Better Care and Better Business 150 150 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…

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Medical illustration showing the placement of a sacral nerve stimulation lead: a needle inserts a thin electrode through the bony opening of the sacrum toward the sacral nerves, which are depicted branching beneath the surface.
InSight: Restoring Normal Habits
InSight: Restoring Normal Habits 471 285 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…

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Illustration of a blood bag
The Transfusion Evolution
The Transfusion Evolution 576 367 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…

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Acetabular “Fleck” Sign Predictive of Labral Avulsion
Acetabular “Fleck” Sign Predictive of Labral Avulsion 150 150 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…

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A Practical Guide to Beginning Clinical Research
A Practical Guide to Beginning Clinical Research 150 150 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…

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

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…

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New Drug Advances Cystic Fibrosis Care
New Drug Advances Cystic Fibrosis Care 150 150 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…

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Sickle Cell Disease: Global Disparities in Prevalance and Outcomes
Sickle Cell Disease: Global Disparities in Prevalance and Outcomes 150 150 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,…

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Marijuana Exposure in Young Children
Marijuana Exposure in Young Children 150 150 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.…

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Suicides Rising Among Young Black Children, Rural Adolescents
Suicides Rising Among Young Black Children, Rural Adolescents 150 150 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,…

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Hidden Victims
Hidden Victims 150 150 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…

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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

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…

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Methadone Weaning: The Role of the Pharmacist
Methadone Weaning: The Role of the Pharmacist 150 150 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…

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An Ethical Discussion of Parental Care Preference
An Ethical Discussion of Parental Care Preference 150 150 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…

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Visualizing Gene Therapy for SMA
Visualizing Gene Therapy for SMA 150 150 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…

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