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An anxious mother brings her healthy 4-month-old daughter for evaluation of itchy pustules on both hands and feet. The eruption has persisted despite 2 courses of permethrin for scabies. The infant also was diagnosed with hand-foot-and-mouth syndrome and dyshidrotic eczema, but neither of these diseases fit clinically.

For Contemporary Pediatrics, Dr Bobby Lazzara discusses a prospective population-based cohort study published in JAMA Pediatrics that examines whether a link exists between early preterm birth and the development of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Researchers at Wisconsin Children’s Hospital in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, found that 100 children who visited a pediatric emergency department (ED) with a reported history of penicillin allergy based on low-risk symptoms all had negative allergy testing for penicillin and all tolerated a penicillin challenge (500 mg of oral amoxicillin) without developing a severe allergic reaction. Penicillin allergy labels were removed from these children’s hospital medical records.

The worried mother of an 11-year-old boy arrives at the office for evaluation of an asymptomatic bumpy rash that appeared suddenly in his right groin a month ago, and that has now extended all the way down to his right ankle. What's the diagnosis?

When you approach a parent who is hesitant about vaccinating her infant at the appropriate well-baby visits, perhaps you say something like this: “Well, we have to do some shots.” Or you might say, “How do you feel about vaccines today?” The former strategy (a “presumptive” approach) is more likely to be effective than the latter (a “participatory” approach), according to a study in parents whom a standardized survey classified as being hesitant about vaccines.