News

Pediatricians now in practice have my sympathy.

As part of our yearlong celebration of Contemporary Pediatrics’ 30th anniversary, we are delighted to unveil a brand-new look with this issue.

You are called to the emergency room to see an ill-looking, 13-year-old boy with a severe flare of his atopic dermatitis associated with fever, malaise, and chills, which started a week ago.

When a child experiences a seizure for the first time, frantic parents turn to their pediatrician for answers about what just happened and what to do next. The conversation should begin by discussing exactly what a seizure is and what it is not.

Insurance companies are now beginning to compensate pediatricians for performing photoscreening, billed under Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) code 99174. We applaud the efforts of the many pediatricians, pediatric ophthalmologists, and state chapters of the AAP who have aggressively petitioned insurance companies to cover this important service for our patients. -Andrew J Schuman, MD, Section Editor

Providing quality-of-life care for the sickest of children was a passion for pediatrician Gary Ceneviva, MD. As a critical care physician, he was troubled by what he saw. So in true pediatrician fashion, he did something about it.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently approved a unique test that can diagnose developmental delays and intellectual disabilities in babies postnatally.

Researchers have discovered a reliable biomarker for necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), a potentially deadly bowel infection that affects primarily extremely low-birth-weight (LBW) infants.

It seems that wide variation exists between hospitals in the United States when it comes to tonsillectomy perioperative care for children.

Researchers recently determined that acute otitis media is associated with an incremental increase in outpatient health care costs of $314 per child per year in the United States, which translates into approximately $2.88 billion in added health care expense annually.

About 10% of the more than 7 million emergency department visits resulting from injuries sustained at school are the result of intentional injuries and not accidents resulting from sports or other physical activity.

Prophylactic use of Lactobacillus reuteri DSM 17938 during the first 3 months of life significantly reduces colic, regurgitation, and constipation, according to a recent study.

Pediatricians are reluctant to prescribe antidepressants to teenagers regardless of the severity of their depression, according to the results of a recent cross-sectional survey.

About one-third of parents of children with autism or other neurodevelopmental disorders try complementary and alternative forms of medicine (CAM), and those that do tend to be wealthier and more highly educated, according to a recent study.

It seems that cost and lack of information are at the heart of why more adolescents aren’t vaccinated against human papillomavirus (HPV), according to a recent review of the literature.

Unlimited cognitive activity after a concussion prolongs symptoms and recovery, a new study shows.

About 1 in every 5 middle school students engages in “sexting,” and those who do are more likely to be sexually active.

New research suggests that all antidepressants are created more or less equal when it comes to their association with suicide attempts in children.

One in every 3 annual healthy visits with adolescents contains no discussion about topics related to sexuality. When discussion does occur, it often lasts barely more than half a minute.

The leading cause of death for persons younger than the age of 24 years is unintentional injuries, according to a new report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Almost half (48%) of parents across the United States are concerned or very concerned that their children and teenagers will try electronic cigarettes, according to a poll conducted by the University of Michigan. In fact, nearly 44% of parents worry that trying the electronic devices will make their adolescents more likely to start smoking tobacco products.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) combined with amitriptyline results in fewer days with headache and migraine disability in kids and teenagers with chronic migraine than does education about migraines and the tricyclic antidepressant.

Contemporary Pediatrics' content managing editor looks at how pediatric practice has changed since her own childhood.

Founding Editor-in-Chief Frank Oski’s vision lives on.

An Institute of Medicine (IOM) panel says that despite public concern about concussions in young people, we really know precious little about them, including how often they occur and their short- and long-term effects.

Investigators compared outcomes in hospitalized children with community-acquired pneumonia who were treated with a narrow-spectrum antibiotic (ampicillin/penicillin) versus a broad-spectrum agent (ceftriaxone/cefotaxime), each by a parenteral route.

Restrictions on the sale of over-the-counter (OTC) cough and cold medications for children aged younger than 2 years and subsequent labeling changes in these products has led to a decline in their unintentional ingestion, therapeutic errors, health care facility referrals for ingestions, and serious medical outcomes in these children, a retrospective database study showed.

The latest update to the HEEADSSS psychosocial interview for adolescents includes new questions on electronic media use in addition to its time-tested strategies for identifying the critical stressors that affect the overall well-being of teenaged patients.

Do parents know whether their pediatric provider offers enhanced access services? Is access to such services associated with fewer visits to an emergency department (ED)? Investigators conducted an Internet-based national survey of 820 parents to answer these questions and determine the prevalence of such enhanced access services in pediatric primary care.

Brief primary care interventions can decrease media time and exposure to violent media.