News

Gunshot Wound

A 5-year-old girl was brought to the emergency department after she was injured during a drive-by shooting. She had 5 small entry wounds: 2 in the arm, 2 in the buttocks, and 1 in the left torso. Radiographs confirmed that a piece of pellet had entered her upper torso but was not in the lung or causing any problem.

The tenth in a year-long series of commentary reviewing topics published in Contemporary Pediatrics 25 years ago. This month's article discusses the influence of TV on children and the AAP's current stance on the subject.

CP Links: LGBTQ links

A collection of links for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning youth, and their parents, friends, and doctors.

Because of the presence of unusual skin findings, a 3-year-old African American girl was evaluated for possible child abuse. The father, the primary guardian, reported that his daughter had returned home from her mother's residence 2 days before-a day earlier than planned. According to the father, the child was crying and had skin lesions, which initially appeared white and then darkened over the course of the next day or two.

A 16-year-old boy with Down syndrome was referred for evaluation of nonspecific symptoms, including difficulty in breathing on standing up from a sitting position, dizziness, frequent abdominal pain, and diarrhea after ingesting fatty foods and milk. He had intermittent asthma exacerbations for which he occasionally used a β-agonist. He had no history of trauma, surgery, or allergies.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recently doubled the amount of vitamin D that it recommends all infants, children, and adolescents receive each day-from 200 to 400 IU. Also new is the academy's recommendation that vitamin D supplementation begin as soon after birth as possible. Supplementation is recommended in infants who do not receive 400 IU per day from formula.

For years, pediatricians have discussed with parents the important role that reading to their children plays in the development of language skills. We have encouraged talking to children about things around them, describing objects and events, and telling stories.

My teenaged patient has celiac disease and type 1 diabetes, both of which are well controlled. The patient’s mother is concerned that her son’s risk of a bowel malignancy or other celiac-related complication later in life would be significantly increased if he ingested small amounts of gluten for 5 to 7 days while at camp or on a church trip. As a result, the youngster is not allowed to participate in such outings, since it is not always possible to pack one’s own food for such trips and the available food options are usually limited.