Hot Topics: Pediatrics

Blog Posts (15)

April 15, 2013

Medical Futility Policy Transparency

Thaddeus Pope, J.D., Ph.D.

Faith Smith was born with Trisomy 18.  She was also diagnosed with a hole in her heart.  An initial consultation with Faith’s cardiologist determined that her heart problem could be fixed.  But after learning that the Faith also had Trisomy 18, the cardiologist advised Faith’s parents that nothing should be done.…

April 8, 2013

A.D.H.D. Seen in 11% of U.S. Children as Diagnoses Rise

[New York Times] Nearly one in five high school age boys in the United States and 11 percent of school-age children over all have received a medical diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, according to new data from the federal Centers f...
March 28, 2012

Dukan Diet Doctor Proposal May Be Extreme, But Isn't Entirely Wrong

A controversial diet guru in France, Dr. Pierre Dukan, has raised a lot of eyebrows and ire for proposing that all high-school students in France, in order to graduate, pass a weight exam.…

July 13, 2011

Is Child Obesity A Form of Child Abuse?

As Art Caplan states in his most recent MSNBC column, childhood obesity has reached epidemic proportions. Whether the result of the food industry, food marketing to children, or lifestyle choices, children (as well as their parents) are getting fat at an alarming rate.…

May 20, 2011

Should Ronald McDonald Be Fired?

Public health advocates are waging a war, not against McDonald’s or the fast food industry per se, but against a much easier target: Ronald McDonald.…

December 8, 2010

How Far We Have Come (and Have Not): Children, Sex, and Gender

In 1965, two twin boys were born, Brian and Bruce. At six months, one of them began to have trouble with urination and had a circumcision which was unfortunately incorrectly performed, leaving his genitalia non-functional.…

November 18, 2010

It's Never Too Early to Tell Your Child "Who Made Them"

This week in the Huffington Post, Robert Klitzman discusses the thorny issue of when parents who conceive using assisted reproductive technologies should tell their children about their origins.…

August 12, 2010

Do We Harm Our Children By Naming Them "Pop"?

Sometimes parents can over-think things. Then sometimes parents are just crazy. Then sometimes parents name their child “Pop”.

According to the University of Oxford Practical Ethics Blog, a Swedish couple has decided to keep the sex of their toddler a secret as to avoid the pressures placed upon children from having to grow up as one gender or another.…

June 24, 2010

New Website is Match.com for Your Genes

Before I even describe the services purportedly offered by BeautifulPeople.com, let me quote Art Caplan who has summed it up better (characteristically so) than anyone else could: “It’s pure, utter nonsensical baloney, at best.…

May 7, 2010

What's the Harm in a Pinprick?

It all depends on the context when asking the question–what’s the harm in a pinprick?

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, when talking about female circumcision, their committee on bioethics has decided that the procedure should be permitted for American doctors.…

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Published Articles (1)

AJOB Primary Research: Volume 4 Issue 2 - Apr 2013

What Constitutes the Best Interest of a Child? Views of Parents, Children, and Physicians in a Pediatric Oncology Setting Martine C. de Vries, Dorine Bresters, Gertjan J. L. Kaspers, Mirjam Houtlosser, Jan M. Wit, Dirk P. Engberts & Evert van Leeuwen

News (21)

April 17, 2013 2:07 pm

U.S. Infant Mortality Rate Fell Steadily From ’05 to ’11

The nation’s infant mortality rate fell by 12 percent from 2005 through 2011, a promising pattern that researchers say may be due in part to a decline in premature births.

March 1, 2013 11:41 am

BPA may increase asthma risk in kids, but tough to avoid (Boston.com)

Excess exposure to BPA, which interferes with the body’s production of certain hormones, has already been linked to increased obesity risks in kids as well as a heightened likelihood of heart disease, diabetes, and kidney disease later in life.

February 25, 2013 5:16 pm

Pediatricians oppose school suspension, expulsion (Reuters Health)

A group representing pediatricians says disciplining students with out-of-school suspension or expulsion is counterproductive to school goals and should only be used on case by case basis.

January 31, 2013 3:32 pm

Disciplining children over fake guns may be wrong lesson (Yahoo News)

A 5-year-old faced with a pile of Legos did what boys have done since the dawn of time: He fashioned a weapon, ran about and made shooting sounds.  That’s when the Massachusetts elementary school sent a letter to his parents and warned that the next time, their son Joe would be suspended.

January 28, 2013 2:28 pm

First-ever health guidelines issued for diabetic kids (CBS News)

The American Academy of Pediatrics issued the first-ever guidelines for type 2 diabetic children Monday.  ”Pediatricians and pediatric endocrinologists are used to dealing with type 1 diabetes. Most have had no formal training in the care of children with type 2,” author Dr. Janet Silverstein.

January 25, 2013 1:24 pm

Baby Born With Heart Outside Body Leaves Texas Hospital (ABC News)

A baby girl born with her heart outside her body has been discharged from the Texas hospital that saved her life.  The birth defect is usually fatal, but Audrina survived a six-hour operation at Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston to tuck her heart back into her body. 

January 14, 2013 3:54 pm

Pediatricians Need to Be More Aware of Alternative Medicine Use Among Children (TIME)

Enough children are now using alternative therapies that physicians should be inquiring about it and parents need to volunteer information about any complementary medicine approaches their children are using to avoid any potential harmful interactions with conventional treatments

November 27, 2012 4:50 pm

Cannabis Oil Pills Helped Child Go Into Cancer Remission (ABC News)

When 7-year-old Mykayla Comstock was diagnosed with leukemia in July, it was less than three days before her mother filed Oregon medical marijuana paperwork so the child could take lime-flavored capsules filled with cannabis oil.

October 18, 2012 4:04 pm

Kids Get Their Say on ADHD Meds in New Study (PsychCentral )

Biomedical ethicist Dr. Ilina Singh and colleagues interviewed children and their families about ADHD, behavior, medication and identity across four contexts: home, school, the doctor’s office and peer groups. The report is intended not only to highlight ethical and social issues surrounding ADHD but also to help families, doctors, teachers and the children themselves to understand from a child’s perspective what it is like to live with ADHD.

July 31, 2012 4:50 pm

Doctor refused to treat girl without vaccinations: Mother (Toronto Sun)

Brianna Warrhunter took her child to hospital in Trenton Wednesday after a daycare worker noticed an “unexplained rash,” the Trenton woman wrote in a complaint she sent to the Ontario Medical Association. Warrhunter said she told the doctor her daughter didn’t have immunizations as she and the father are “conscientious objectors” of immunizations.  “Her tone turned from friendly to rude,” said Warrhunter, alleging the Trenton Memorial Hospital doctor promptly stopped the exam and left the room saying she could not help the girl.

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