News

Q I follow a family of three children 2, 5, and 6 years of age. Recently, their father joined Alcoholics Anonymous to address his long-standing alcohol addiction. What is the best way to explain this situation to the children?

Q The mother of an 8-year-old girl in my practice, who describes herself as having been "very sensitive" ever since she was a child, mentioned to me that her daughter has recently adopted what she calls an "uncaring attitude" about the health and well-being of her family.

In early March 2003, in reports buried under headlines that described preparations for war, Americans began to learn about an apparently new respiratory infection spreading from the Far East. As news of severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, moved to the front pages, we learned about the immense effort of scientists around the world to track the disease, establish diagnostic criteria and a mechanism of contagion, determine a cause, develop diagnostic tests, and investigate possible treatments.

A physician who practiced amid an outbreak of smallpox reviews the immunization procedure and complications.

Smallpox has re-emerged--not yet as a disease but as a subject of apprehension, debate, and misunderstanding. Here, an expert reviews the disease, vaccine, and proposed immunization strategies.

Does the latest study of a therapy warrant changing the care you give to children in your practice? You can be the judge--if you know what questions to ask about the research and how to find the answers.

Puzzler of the month

Letters and responses from readers

After years of neglect, this method of managing hard-to-control seizures is being used more often by pediatric neurologists.

April in the nation's capital city is a time of flowering: public spaces filled with daffodils and tulips, trees bursting into blossom. Most years, optimism flowers along with the trees.

In all campaigns to combat substance abuse by adolescents, the spotlight is usually on illicit substances—marijuana, heroin, crack, Ecstasy, or whatever else is the teenage drug-du-jour.

Q I am inquiring about a very active, intense 12-month-old boy who sleeps in his parents' bedroom on a mattress on the floor.

Planning is under way for a new children's hospital building at my institution, prompting predictions about the inpatient needs of infants, children, and young adults into the next few decades. One's natural instinct is to consider today's needs and the innovations that can be reasonably anticipated during the next five to 10 years, but this new hospital probably won't even be occupied until at least 2007.

A 14-year-old girl is brought to you complaining of an itchy red rash on her back. The rash appeared four months ago as a scaly red bump and enlarged over several weeks in an annular pattern to cover a large area.

The sheer number of recommended childhood immunizations makes it imperative that pediatricians be able to recognize and treat allergic reactions and identify those children in whom revaccination is contraindicated.

Puzzler for the month

Teasing and bullying harm both victim and perpetrator. Pediatricians are in a good position to address these destructive behaviors and reduce their toll.