
Many hospitals and birthing centers offer this controversial birthing method to reduce the stress and pain of labor. But questions about safety persist. Includes a Guide for Parents.

Many hospitals and birthing centers offer this controversial birthing method to reduce the stress and pain of labor. But questions about safety persist. Includes a Guide for Parents.

The section of the National Institutes of Health that conducts and supports research on human development, medical rehabilitation, and the health of children, adults, families, and communities, has launched its redesigned Web site with your need and interests in mind. The new National Institute of Child Health and Human Development site, http://www.nichd.nih.gov, provides easy access to information for clinicians and for researchers, patients, and the general public.



In light of the FDA's black box warning about potential bone loss in teenagers, how do you counsel teenagers about this highly effective birth control method? Recommendations from the World Health Organization provide a practical, evidence-based approach to weighing the risks.


Pioneering physicians took inspiration from chickens and zoos and envisioned a means to reduce mortality in premature newborns. The idea worked, they strutted their stuff before the public, and the rest is medical history.

What's causing this newborn's feeding problems?



What's causing a 17-year-old female to complain of diarrhea; vomiting; severe, cramping abdominal pain; tenesmus; and fever?

Vulnerable child syndrome distorts parents' perceptions of their child's health, disrupts the parent-child relationship, and can harm development and behavior in an otherwise healthy child. Here are steps you can take to recognize problems early and improve family interactions.

What's causing chronic, intermittent abdominal pain radiating to both flanks in a 15-year-old girl?


Pediatricians can expect problems meeting vaccination schedules forhuman papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine. Based on data from the 1996 to2002 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, only 11% of adolescents haveprimary care visits on a schedule appropriate to HPV vaccination.

Vaccines show great promise for primary prevention of human papillomavirus infection, but effective screening, using the latest guidelines, and education are still key. Second of two parts.


You can mitigate the health and educational risks faced by an adolescent parent and her child by providing a medical home for both. This "teen-tot" model of family-centered care provides a framework for success.

How did I get herpes? Is there a cure? What causes an outbreak-- and what can I do to prevent another one? My friend got herpes and had to stay in the hospital; will that happen to me? Can I still have children?


What goes wrong with blood cells and genes of children who suffer this grim disease? And how has a high cure rate revealed late effects of treatment? Answers to these (and more) questions shape your ongoing basic care of patients at the onset of, during, and after their illness.

Expanding knowledge, new screening technologies, and effective vaccines have opened new horizons in, and put pediatricians at the forefront of, preventing cervical cancer and other diseases caused by human papillomavirus. Here's what we know now and what it means for your patients. First of two parts.

This update answers key questions about emergency contraception and will help increase your patients' access to this form of pregnancy prevention. Includes a Guide for Patients.

A newborn girl with skin eruption involving the face and scalp, and no adenopathy or organomegaly

Two separate studies show that Merck & Co.'s and GlaxoSmithKline's human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines appear highly effective in preventing cervical cancer, vulvar cancer, and genital warts.The recently completed trials involved Merck's Gardasil and GlaxoSmithKline's experimental vaccine. Earlier studies showed that Gardasil also protects against cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN)-precancerous lesions that can develop into cervical cancer.