This week on the Contemporary Pediatrics website, we covered topics ranging from the benefits of early type 1 diabetes screening to the safety of prenatal paracetamol use. Take a look at some of our top stories from the past week (Monday, February 02, to Friday, February 06, 2026) and click on each link to read and watch anything you may have missed.

Renuka Dias, PhD, MBBS, highlights feasibility of type 1 diabetes screening in children

In a Contemporary Pediatrics interview, Renuka Dias, PhD, MBBS, consultant pediatric endocrinologists at the University of Birmingham, discussed the findings of the Early Surveillance for Autoimmune Diabetes (ELSA) study, a large UK-based investigation evaluating the feasibility and acceptability of population screening for type 1 diabetes in children. ELSA was the first study in the United Kingdom to test a nationwide early detection approach using a simple dried blood spot test to screen for islet autoantibodies, which can predict progression to insulin-dependent diabetes.

Results published recently demonstrated that this screening program was highly feasible and well tolerated. Nearly all participants with a positive screening result completed the full pathway, including education, and adverse events were rare and minor, typically related to the blood sampling process itself.

Experts discuss neurodevelopmental outcomes after assisted delivery

In this Contemporary Pediatrics interview, Giulia M. Muraca, MPH, PhD, and Maya Rajasingham, BSc, discuss findings from a population-based analysis examining whether neurodevelopmental outcomes in children differ according to the mode of delivery when spontaneous vaginal birth is not possible. The researchers focused on a specific and clinically relevant subgroup: individuals who enter labor intending a spontaneous vaginal birth, reach full dilation, but ultimately require an intervention to complete delivery.

The analysis evaluated long-term neurodevelopmental outcomes in children, specifically attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder, and intellectual disability. According to Rajasingham, the overall results were reassuring. Rates of ADHD, autism, and intellectual disability were largely similar across the different delivery modes examined.

Nancy Young, MD, discusses predicting language outcomes after cochlear implant

Accurately predicting spoken language outcomes in deaf children who receive cochlear implants is critical to maximizing the benefits of this life-changing technology, according to Nancy Young, MD, professor at Northwestern University.

Young and colleagues explored deep transfer learning, an advanced form of deep learning designed to handle heterogeneous data. Their multicenter study included children from 3 continents, spanning different spoken languages, outcome measures, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) protocols. The models were trained using preoperative brain MRI data, hearing status before implantation, and post-implant language outcomes, with the goal of predicting whether a child would be a high or low language improver.

The results showed that deep transfer learning outperformed traditional machine learning approaches and remained accurate despite wide variation in data sources. One particular deep transfer learning model demonstrated strong performance across centers, suggesting the feasibility of a single, globally applicable prediction tool. Young emphasized that this “predict to prescribe” approach could accelerate translation into clinical practice and research.

Heather Prime, PhD, explains why family systems assessments matter for child mental health

In a recent interview with Contemporary Pediatrics, Heather Prime, PhD, associate professor at York University, emphasized that children’s mental health cannot be fully understood in isolation from their family environment, making family systems assessments a critical component of pediatric mental health care.

Rather than viewing mental health concerns as inherent to the child, Prime explained that they emerge from dynamic interactions between the child and their broader context, particularly family processes. Parenting styles, co-parenting coordination and conflict, and the quality of family relationships all shape how a child’s distress develops, persists, and ultimately resolves.

Without assessing these factors, clinicians are left with an incomplete understanding of a child’s experience. Family systems assessments allow clinicians to identify patterns or negative cycles that may be maintaining symptoms and to work collaboratively with families to interrupt those patterns. Prime stressed that this approach is not about assigning blame, but about recognizing family strengths and using them to create a clear, supportive roadmap for change.

Asma Khalil, PhD, explains how prenatal paracetamol use does not increase developmental risks

Concerns about a possible link between paracetamol (acetaminophen) use during pregnancy and autism in children emerged in 2025, prompting anxiety among pregnant patients and renewed scrutiny of the existing evidence. These concerns were the catalyst for a comprehensive review led by Asma Khalil, PhD, professor of obstetrics and maternal fetal medicine at City St George’s, University of London, who sought to evaluate whether previously reported associations were supported by high-quality data.

Using validated tools to assess study quality and bias, the researchers found no evidence that paracetamol exposure during pregnancy increased the risk of autism, ADHD, or intellectual disability. Notably, the absence of an association was consistent across the most robust study designs, studies with low risk of bias, and those with long-term follow-up of more than 5 years.

The findings suggest that previously reported links were likely explained by other factors, such as genetic predisposition or the underlying conditions that led women to take paracetamol, including fever or infection. In these cases, the illness itself—not the medication—may have contributed to observed developmental risks.