News

Findings from a recent US Department of Agriculture report show that “sweetened beverages” were the number 1 category of items purchased by households participating in the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

A trial comparing amitriptyline, topiramate, and placebo for prevention of migraine in children and adolescents with a history of migraine found that all 3 had about the same effect on reducing headache frequency or headache-related disability.

A follow-up trial conducted 6 years after the conclusion of a randomized controlled trial of early intervention in autism spectrum disorder demonstrated that the intervention had a long-term effect on autism symptoms and continued effects on parent and child social interaction.

In a retrospective study of 27,000 infants aged younger than 3 months evaluated for urinary tract infection (UTI) with paired urinalysis and urine culture, investigators set out to determine the optimal urine white blood cell (WBC) threshold for UTI when using an automated urinalysis system stratified by urine concentration.

A congressional fact of life is the dangerous “Christmas tree” bill, which passes with so much on it that many things don’t get the scrutiny they deserve. The 21st Century Cures Act, signed into law by President Obama on December 13, 2016, is such a bill.

President-elect Donald Trump has announced he will nominate Seema Verma, MPH, a consultant with extensive work in Medicaid in several states, to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).

The new “MACRA” system, underway as of January 2017, massively changes the way physicians are paid under Medicare and will impact pediatricians indirectly but substantially, say experts.

Will the Trump administration promote vaccine hesitancy or create policies that are less than vaccine friendly? Or will his doubts about vaccines encourage hesitancy?

A longitudinal study examined the relationship between prenatal or postnatal high-fat, high-sugar diet and symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children who demonstrated either early-onset persistent conduct disorder or minimal conduct problems.

A major dilemma for patients is simply how to access good care that is both convenient and affordable. To thrive in these challenging times, practices should consider all options to facilitate patient access. If you have an open mind, you may even consider changing your “traditional” practice to one that provides “direct primary care.”

Urolithiasis occurrence is increasing in both adults and children in the United States, with nearly 1 in 11 adults having a stone at some time in their life. Unfortunately, stone occurrence in children also appears to have increased from 1% to 2% in the 1950s to 1970s to almost 10%.

The article “National hospital initiative targets preventable injuries,” in the most recent issue of Contemporary Pediatrics, describes 35 years of impressive work by a nationwide coalition of concerned pediatricians and pediatric trauma surgeons who have championed hospital, school-based, and community-wide initiatives to reduce the prevalence and incidence of unintentional injuries in children.

Parents are less likely to make dosing errors when giving their child liquid medications if they use an oral syringe--rather than a cup-- to measure the dose, a recent trial showed.

Unintentional injury is ranked number one among the 10 leading causes of death in children. In fact, injuries, ranging from car and bike crashes to poisonings and gunshot wounds, kill more children than anything else, starting at age 1 year to age 44 years.

Children who spent 2 consecutive years in classrooms outfitted with desks at which they worked standing (or while sitting on a stool) had a significantly lower body mass index (BMI) than their peers in classrooms with traditional standard desks, a recent study reported.

A study conducted in Berkeley, California, the first US jurisdiction to implement an excise tax on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs), found that consumption of SSBs decreased 21% in that city after the tax was imposed.

A full-term male infant was born to a 33-year-old gravida 3, para 3 mother. The prenatal course was uncomplicated, without gestational diabetes; the mother received prenatal care at an out-of-state institution. At the delivery, however, the baby was notably macrosomic, with shoulder dystocia and perinatal distress requiring positive pressure ventilation.

At the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exibition (NCE) in October, I again presented 2 workshops on office technologies, sponsored by the AAP’s Section on Advances in Technology and Therapeutics. I made every effort to make this year’s workshop a unique experience, showcasing some new technology while including some of my old favorites.

Pediatrics in 2016: Money

In our 4th annual Issue and Attitudes Survey, it was clear that money was one of your "pain points" for 2016.

Between MOC, your workload, your stress levels, and other job demands, morale was another "pain point" that we heard loud and clear in our annual Issues and Attitudes survey.