One in 10 adolescents uses study drugs
May 28th 2013Feeling the pressure to succeed academically, 10% of teenagers are using someone else’s prescription stimulant medications-“study drugs”-to do better in school. Surprisingly, only 1% of parents are aware that their children are abusing these medicines.
AAP policy addresses care for homeless kids
May 28th 2013Homelessness can have a lifelong impact on children’s health. New recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) provide pediatricians with a plan to address the adverse health effects of housing insecurity on homeless children and their families.
Suicidal kids and guns in homes a deadly mix
May 6th 2013One in 5 children and teenagers at risk for suicide lives in a home where firearms are present, and 15% of these kids at risk know how to access both the guns and bullets, said researchers at the Pediatric Academic Societies annual meeting this week in Washington, DC.
Screening and Intervention for Intimate Partner Violence A Practical Approach
May 1st 2013Fifteen million children are exposed to intimate partner violence in their homes each year, and all pediatricians, whether they are aware of it or not, have cared for families in which there is overt or hidden physical or sexual abuse.
FDA approves EC pill without prescription
April 30th 2013The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the Plan B One-Step levonorgestrel pill for emergency contraception (EC) without prescription for women aged 15 years and older, although proof of age must be provided at the time of purchase.
AAP declares standards of care for home births
April 29th 2013Recognizing that women have the right to decide to deliver their babies at home, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has issued a policy statement that advocates standards of practice for planned home births that are consistent with standards of practice for infants born in medical care facilities.