Neonatal/Perinatology

A new clinical report from the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Drugs says that many medicines are safe to use for breastfeeding mothers, but it cautions that the risk for babies of exposure to any drug through breast milk must be evaluated for both the importance of the medication to the mother and the benefits of breastfeeding for the infant.

The American Thoracic Society has published new guidelines on the classification, diagnosis, and management of childhood interstitial lung disease (chILD), focusing on neonates and infants aged younger than 2 years.

A simple car seat insert that maintains a baby’s head in a neutral position without its chin touching its chest reduces the severity of hypoxic events while the infant is in the car seat, but does not reduce the overall number of hypoxic events, a new study finds.

Knowing what to look for on cranial computed tomography scans and magnetic resonance imaging can help identify and time abusive head trauma (AHT) in infants, thus facilitating identification and exclusion of potential perpetrators.

Deceased-donor partial liver transplantation now has outcomes in infants and small children that are comparable to those achieved with whole organ transplantation. Increased confidence in this procedure could increase the pediatric organ pool dramatically, thereby decreasing the high waitlist mortality of this age group.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is beginning its new effort to stimulate research on treatments for neonates in the wake of last year’s legislation, the FDA Safety and Innovation Act.

Preliminary data from a randomized, double-blind trial reveal that giving preterm babies daily supplementation of 800 international units (IU) of vitamin D reduces vitamin insufficiency that may lead to softening and weakening of their bones.

Physicians’ diagnoses of probable gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) in infants who cry and spit up excessively often lead them to overmedicate healthy babies, according to new research.

The beta-blocker propranolol has been shown to clear or mostly clear infant hemangiomas after 6 months of treatment, according to preliminary findings from a clinical trial presented at the meeting of the American Academy of Dermatology in Miami Beach, Florida.

A new technique facilitates collection of infant urine samples. Spanish investigators reported a technique for obtaining a midstream clean urine sample in newborns in a median time of 45 seconds.

You care called to the emergency department to evaluate a 4-month old girl with multiple areas of purpura, including a distinctive bruise on the later aspect of the left thigh. The child's mother states that she noticed these lesions after picking up the infant from her biologic father, whose was watching the child alone. No trauma history is reported. The child has been otherwise in good health, with no signs of infection.

The CDC has released a report on the effect of assisted reproductive technology on multiple births, low birth weight, and preterm weight.

Babies who are born preterm or small for gestational age are at increased risk for developingesophagitis early in life, according to a recent study of the association between the risk for esophagitis and birth history.

Babies as young as 2 months at increased risk for meningococcal disease should be immunized with a new combination meningitis vaccine.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) cautions that SimplyThick, a brand of thickening agent added to breast milk or formula for premature babies, has been linked to necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) in a full-term infant.

A study in Finland found that infants who had contact with dogs in their first year showed fewer respiratory tract symptoms or infections.

Functional foods for post-partum mothers include galactagogues to enhance breast feeding and teas to soothe colic.

The ophthalmologist was not able to rule abuse in or out based on his examination because of the number of retinal hemorrhages seen.

Fathers' interactions with their infants in the first months of life appear to influence children's behavior by the time they reach their first birthdays, British researchers have found.

AAP recommendations for diagnosing and managing a first urinary tract infection in children aged 2 to 24 months were updated in 2011.

A baby presented to you at 8 months has episodes of vomiting and has experienced rapid deceleration of weight velocity since 4 months.

Infants avoid spending time examining stimuli that are either too simple or too complex, focusing instead on events with an intermediate level of complexity, according to a new study.

Starting enteral feeding early in preterm infants who are small for their age could result in earlier achievement of full enteral feeding without increasing the risk of necrotizing enterocolitis.

Escherichia coli has replaced group B Streptococcus (GBS) as the leading cause of bacteremia in term infants, with E coli accounting for 56% of cases, followed by GBS (21%) and Staphylococcus aureus (8%).

Sweet-tasting solutions such as glucose and sucrose are commonly used to alleviate pain in infants undergoing minor invasive procedures. Expressed breast milk may be an alternative to sweet solutions, but evidence of its analgesic efficacy is limited. Two new studies look at what works for neonatal pain relief.

A new policy statement by the American Academy of Pediatrics reaffirms its support for exclusive breastfeeding for about 6 months, with continuation of breastfeeding for 1 year or longer after solid foods are introduced as desired by mother and infant.

The case reads: 6-week-old female with twitching episodes. It helps to educate yourself regarding the Moro reflex.

An ongoing study that could lead to an imaging biomarker for autism as early as 6 months, before the onset of observable behavioral symptoms, may also eventually provide practitioners an avenue for earlier intervention in autism spectrum disorders