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During a presentation today at the American Academy of Pediatrics' (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition, a pediatric infectious disease expert and pediatric neurologist addressed the latest findings on a possible link between strep throat and Tourette syndrome (TS). In short: The hypothesis is intriguing but more study is needed.

Charging parents for telephone calls is a policy that is already working for a number of pediatric practices around the country, Andrew Hertz, MD, told an audience of pediatricians at the AAP National Conference here today.

With the high injury rate and high mortality associated with substance abuse in teenagers, John R. Knight, MD, of Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, Mass., told an audience of pediatricians attending the AAP's Annual Conference that screening for substance abuse should be a part of every practice. He recommended a screening tool he has been working on at Harvard's Center for Substance Abuse Research.

AAP's primary effort to combat the "mega issue" of obesity among children in the United States this year will be a tool kit to help clinicians deal with the problem, Nancy Krebs, MD, co-chair of the Academy's task force on obesity, told attendees at the AAP National Conference today.

To many new mothers, breastfeeding is a difficult experience. As a result, many mothers do not breastfeed through the first year of life as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

As the American Academy of Pediatrics' 75th year comes to a close at the organization's National Conference and Exhibition in Washington, D.C., its members - now 60,000 strong - are taking time to examine some of the successes that have contributed to advancements in children's health.

Adenike Grange, MD, of Nigeria, president of the International Pediatric Association (IPA) and a professor of pediatrics at the College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Nigeria, addressed 2,000 attendees today at the AAP's National Conference and Exhibition (NCE) in Washington, D.C. Her focus? The challenges and opportunities of global child health, and how the IPA is working to mobilize its extensive global network of pediatricians for advocacy and programs in child health around the world. Targeted program areas include child health in Sub-Saharan Africa, childhood tuberculosis, children's environmental health, child health in a humanitarian emergency, essential medicine for children and universal immunization.

Health care for children is at a tipping point. That's the warning issued by American Academy of Pediatrics' President Carol Berkowitz, MD, who addressed an audience of almost 2,000 pediatricians today at the AAP National Conference and Exhibition today in Washington, D.C.

With obesity ranking as a major health threat for children today, pediatricians need to be involved in getting kids started in exercise and sports and keeping them involved, Jordan Metzl, MD, told a session at the American Academy of Pediatrics national conference today.

The answer? We don't really know, according to Craig Newschaffer, PhD, associate professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health. But fears of an autism epidemic have been overblown by the press and advocacy groups, said Dr. Newschaffer, speaking at the American Academy of Pediatrics National Conference and Exhibition today in Washington, D.C.

Dr. Schuman will also discuss larger issues of technology in the pediatric office with conference attendees when he visits the Contemporary Pediatrics Exhibit Hall booth (#822) on Sunday, October 9, 2005, from noon until 4 p.m. He'll also bring his novel "Pretty Good Pediatrician" (PGP) program to the booth to recognize the hard work of pediatric clinicians.

More than 50% of the population of the United States suffers from an allergy, according to the findings of a study conducted by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently approved Adderall XR (an extended-release formulation of mixed salts of amphetamine) as a once-daily treatment for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in adolescents 13 to 17 years old. That action bridges an "indication gap" between earlier approval of the product for patients 6 to 12 years old and for older (18 years) adolescents and adults.

Community-acquired Staphylococcus aureus is deadlier and better at evading human immune defenses than strains of S aureus that originate in health-care settings, assert the authors of a recent article in the Journal of Immunology.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this month approved Merck's ProQuad, the first vaccine approved in the United States that protect against measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella in children 12 months to 12 years old in a single dose. The formulation was also approved for use in children 12 months to 12 years old if a second dose is to be administered. ProQuad combines two Merck vaccines: MMR II and Varivax.

Homemade trick-or-treat treats are nice but unless you know the maker well, don't let your child eat such goodies. That's one bite-size piece of Halloween advice that parents will appreciate hearing from you-and there is more for you to pass along.

Small changes in the way physicians run their practice can have a major impact on the bottom line. Three simple steps, controlling overhead costs, increasing collections, and billing for all services, can make a difference in your patients' clinical outcomes as well as your own financial health.

There is no secret to finding, hiring, and keeping great office staff. Prepare before you need to hire, hire correctly, and be the best boss in town.

Small changes in the way physicians run their practice can have a major impact on the bottom line. Three simple steps, controlling overhead costs, increasing collections, and billing for all services, can make a difference in your patients' clinical outcomes as well as your own financial health.

Personal digital assistants (PDAs) are becoming standard equipment for primary care physicians. More than 70% of clinicians claim to use PDAs for reference information, noted Jeremy Golding, M.D., associate professor of clinical family medicine at the University of Massachusetts College of Medicine in Worcester, Mass. Among medical students, residents, and younger physicians, PDAs are ubiquitous.

The Internet. It's a worldwide repository of medical information larger than any physical library ever imagined. It's searchable. It's open any time of the day or night. And it's a jungle, filled with misinformation, traps, and predators.

Alea jacta est, The die is cast. The time has come. You have decided to join the 21st century with an electronic health record, or EHR. But what comes next?

Taylor Hooton had it all. A solid high school student, popular, a star baseball pitcher in Plano, TX. But at 16 years old and 6'3", he wasn't big enough to be a varsity star. Or so his JV coach warned, telling Taylor that if he wanted to make the cut, he had to get bigger.

Athletes are peculiar patients. Relief from the pain of injury is not their first priority, nor is healing an injury. The number one priority is getting back in the game, back on the bike, back on the road.

Americans are caught in a twin epidemic. On one side is a rising tide of obesity, fueled by changes in eating habits, diet, and exercise. On the other side is a tide of diet plans, fueled by our desire for a magic bullet to cure the problem with minimal effort.

Anxiety and depression are both common and commonly missed in children and adolescents. At any given time, 5% of the population under the age of 18 has some symptom of anxiety or depression, said Helena Karnani, MbChb, a practicing physician in the St. Vincent's Family Residency Program in Jacksonville, FL. By the age of 18, 20% of children have had at least one major episode.

Are American children getting fatter or are they getting more exercise? Both, it turns out.

Adolescents are different from other patients, and not just because they are teenagers. Adolescence spans the transition from childhood to adulthood, a time when teens establish their own identity by testing boundaries and trying on different adult behavior patterns.

A cool compress for itchy eyes-and rumbling stomachs