News

There has been much discussion both for and against Maintenance of Certification (MOC) requirements. This article explains how a permanent board certification program for physicians transitioned into MOC recertification and discusses the controversies surrounding the current program.

Neonatal abstinence syndrome that occurs in a newborn following birth is attributed to the withdrawal of opioids, prescription medications, or illicit drugs that were ingested by the mother during pregnancy. Because symptoms may or may not be present at birth, early screening and pharmacologic treatment can stabilize an infant experiencing narcotic withdrawal.

Bronchiolitis, an acute inflammatory injury of the bronchioles, is the most common cause of lower respiratory tract infection in children aged younger than 12 months.

Children get about 10% of the federal budget, while 43% goes to the “adult” expenditures under Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, says an analysis from the Urban Institute in Washington, DC.

Despite the advent of intrapartum antibiotic prophylaxis (IAP) and ongoing attempts to identify more accurate diagnostic tools, neonatal sepsis or bacteremia remains a common and potentially deadly occurrence, particularly in very-low-birth-weight (VLBW,

We’re still hearing from you about our second annual Issues & Attitudes Survey, such as these comments from your pediatric colleague in Succasunna, NJ.

Contrary to current guidelines, children born before 37 weeks’ gestation should be considered at high risk for complications of influenza, a new meta-analysis shows.

Tell patients and families about medical errors and apologize for any harm done, the authors of a recent Ethics Rounds article in Pediatrics counsel pediatricians.

An anesthetic, given by nasal spray, is a safe, needle-free alternative to opiates for relieving moderate to severe pain in children with limb injuries, according to the first randomized, controlled trial to compare intranasal analgesics in children in the emergency department.

Infants have borne the brunt of the worst outbreak of pertussis, or whooping cough, in almost 70 years in California, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports.

In a new policy statement, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has expanded its recommendations for giving pneumococcal conjugate vaccine to prevent invasive pneumococcal disease caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae to high-risk older children and adolescents.

Newly developed neonatal nomograms enable healthcare providers and parents to follow weight changes in exclusively breastfed babies during the first days of life and identify abnormal weight loss patterns, as described in a recent study.

Many chest radiographs performed on children don’t benefit them clinically and expose them to unnecessary radiation, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America.

Sexually active teenaged boys can benefit from circumcision and should be given that information, according to new draft recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published in the Federal Register.

The bad news is that office visits for atopic dermatitis are on the rise; the good news is that the condition usually responds to topical therapy and vigilant skin care, according to a clinical report from the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Only 18 states require that children on Medicaid who have elevated blood lead levels receive in-home follow-up services mandated by Medicaid’s Early Periodic Screening, Diagnostic, and Treatment benefit, according to a recent report.

Pediatricians should include oral health assessment, maintenance, and anticipatory guidance in their care of young children, a new policy statement from the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends.

A single training session on food allergy for school nurses can improve their response to allergic reactions in children for a sustained period, a new study reports.

How much parents adhere to medical professionals’ advice about their child’s media use depends on whether their pediatrician or the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)-or both--is the source of the advice.

Brief tailored counseling by telephone boosted the long-term effects of an evidence-based behavioral change intervention related to sexually transmitted infection/human immunodeficiency virus (STI/HIV), sustaining STI/HIV preventive behaviors and reducing incident STIs during a 36-month follow-up.

Investigators set out to determine the impact of acid suppression therapy on the abundance and diversity of gastric and lung microflora in children with chronic cough.

Too many children are consuming too many sweet-sweetened drinks and too much 100% fruit juice.

The world has drastically changed with the advent of technology, which has had an immense impact on the field of medicine. Changes in the fields of medicine and surgery are moving at a fast pace and pediatrics is catching up.

The mother of a 17-year-old boy frantically brings him to the office for evaluation of an itchy, burning rash that started on his hands 1 hour ago.

I recently had the good fortune to present a forum on medical office technologies (“Must-Have Gadgets, Gizmos, and Technology for the Pediatric Office”) at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in beautiful San Diego.

The culture and technology for online interaction continue their rapid evolution, and the processes for keeping children safe on the Internet must do the same, said several experts at a recent session held by the Child Welfare League of America and others in Washington, DC.

“Mom/Dad, can I have a smartphone?” Children are posing this question to their parents at earlier and earlier ages. If parents wait until they are asked to consider how they will monitor technology and their children, they are already behind.

The pediatrician's role is to support both the child with spina bifida and the family as they come to terms with this chronic illness. This article presents the 10 actions that are most important in preparing for and caring for a child with this complex health need.

In an exclusive interview with Charles J. Lockwood, MD, MHCM, senior vice president, University of South Florida (USF) Health, and dean, USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, Tampa, we asked what steps physicians can take to impact the sobering statistic of 1 in 9 US infants still being born at 37 or fewer weeks.

For the second year, Contemporary Pediatrics has surveyed a subset of our readership of approximately 56,000 US pediatricians about the issues you are confronting on the front lines of providing healthcare to children.