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  • What can we do to really PREVENT child abuse?

    As you are driving around in the next few weeks, you may see clusters of blue and silver pinwheels in front of local businesses and organizations. These pinwheel gardens are displayed for the purpose of calling attention to April as Child Abuse Prevention Month.  As someone who works in a program that provides counseling to children who have been abused, I would like nothing better than to work myself out of a job—to reduce child abuse and neglect to a point where programs like The Orange County Children’s Advocacy Center are not needed.

  • What we do now may affect our future children’s genetics

    We are all aware that mothers who smoke while they are pregnant run a higher risk of having children who are premature, smaller than they should be, or stillborn. This is likely due to reduced oxygen supply to the baby through mom’s diseased body and to toxins shared by mom with baby. We also know that children who are exposed to second-hand smoke have a higher risk of developing respiratory diseases like asthma, chronic lung disease and even cancer due to direct lung damage from inhaled smoke.

    What you do with your body early in life can affect future generations

    But recent data suggests that a father’s behavior even years prior to conception may affect the health of his children and future generations. For example, early paternal smoking has been associated with increased body mass in children. Paternal alcoholism has been associated with smaller birth weights in babies, and hyperactivity in children. Most recently, smoking even early in life has been found to be associated with an increased risk of certain forms of asthma in a man’s children. A study which was recently presented at the European Respiratory Society International Congress looked at 13,000 men and women and found that non-allergic asthma was significantly more common in children whose fathers smoked before the age of 15. In addition, the longer the father smoked, the higher the risk of his child having this kind of asthma. Interestingly, the same link was not found in children whose mothers smoked before they conceived.

  • Get to know Dr. Pinnelas, a pediatric hospitalist

    Over 20 years ago, I began my career in Orlando as a private pediatrician. I was very happy as an office-based pediatrician, and I never dreamed I would have changed my career path. I always enjoyed making hospital rounds before going back to the office for the rest of the day. I also had an opportunity to teach students and residents at the hospital which was intensely rewarding. The hospital approached me over 14 years ago and asked if I would be willing to start something “new” which was to create the Pediatric Hospitalist Service at Arnold Palmer Hospital. Becoming a pediatric hospitalist was a very new specialty in the United States. It had just started to gain some traction in the adult patient population but was rare in pediatrics. I was game, so with my best friend and mentor, Matthew Seibel and two of the best nurses on planet earth, we founded this new venture.

    So what is a pediatric hospitalist?

    A pediatric hospitalist is a physician who only cares for patients in the hospital; most don’t have an outpatient practice. The concept of a pediatric hospitalist makes so much sense for so many reasons and here are just a few.

  • What To Do When Your Child Wants To Quit Team Sports

    Your child wants to give up playing organized sports, but should you agree? There are many reasons why that might not be a good idea. Let’s look at the benefits, how you can encourage your child to keep going, and when it might be the right time to stop.

  • 12 things you can do to support families dealing with childhood cancer

    No one expects a cancer diagnosis, especially not for their child. When cancer shows its ugly face, it comes like a thief in the night, stealing the normalcy the family once enjoyed. Instead of spending time in the carpool line, at playdates, or friends’ birthday parties, these families are spending time in hospital rooms, helping their child cope with the side effects of chemotherapy, and weighing life or death treatment decisions. After spending time with many families who have walked this journey, I can tell you the one thing that nearly every parent of a sick child has said: that the care and support of their friends and family during their difficult time made a world of difference to them. What you do to care for these families really does matter, and they will remember it for the rest of their lives.

  • Dr. Simms-Cendan answers: “When should I take my teenage daughter to the gynecologist?”

    Many parents wonder when they should take their daughter to a gynecologist. Is it with their first period? Is it when they become sexually active? When do they need a pap smear? Some women dread their own appointments and worry their daughters will have a traumatic experience. Well, the good news is that gynecologic care for adolescents has come a long way, and teens can be provided with important information in a sensitive and caring way, and many girls do not even need a pelvic exam!

    What’s Normal?

    First, let me cover a bit of what’s normal. Most girls begin breast development around 10-11 years of age, and the average age girls start their periods in the U.S. is about 12.5 years. Most girls will bleed 5-7 days and cycles occur every 25-40 days. If a girl hasn’t started her period by age 14, she should be evaluated, and although some girls just need more time, others may have a real problem. Many girls have irregular menses for the first 2-4 years after they start their periods, but if a girl has been bleeding more than 10 days per month, they should be evaluated to prevent problems with anemia. I’ve seen girls who have bled for 6 months before seeing a gynecologist and some have been so anemic by then that they required blood transfusion. Most girls will notice an increase in menstrual cramps about two years after they start their periods, as this is when they start to actually ovulate. Severe cramps so that a girl is missing school are not normal and she should also be seen. Finally, if a girl has had regular menses and then the menses become irregular, skipping months or becoming more frequent, she should also be evaluated. Sometimes there is a hormonal disorder that needs to be evaluated.

  • Webinar with Dr. Amy Smith and her team at the Pediatric Brain Tumor Program

    Once a child has completed treatment for a brain or spinal tumor, what comes next? This week, we hosted a webinar with Dr. Amy Smith, pediatric neuro-oncologist at Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children, and discussed how families make the transition from treatment to long-term follow-up. Dr. Smith and her team at the Pediatric Brain Tumor Program explained some of the ongoing physical, emotional and intellectual challenges that a child might face as a result of their disease and treatment. We also highlighted some of the hurdles that families face when children re-enter the school environment and as the child enters adolescence and adulthood. Learn more about how to help your family navigate this next part of the journey.

  • Get to know Dr. Bornstein, pediatric gastroenterologist at Arnold Palmer Hospital

    As chief of the Pediatric Center for Digestive Health and Nutrition at Arnold Palmer Hospital, Dr. Jeffrey Bornstein has been an integral part of our medical team for more than 14 years and has helped thousands of children with gastrointestinal disorders. We sat down with Dr. Bornstein to find out a little more about the man behind the medicine. Here’s what he had to say:

    What exactly do gastroenterologists do?

    We take care of patients who have problems with their liver, stomach or intestines. Some are minor and often get better, like babies with reflux or children with constipation. Many people have abdominal pain or stomach aches. Others are more serious - patients who are unable to eat, or who have inflammatory bowel disease (inflammation in the intestines or colon), or who have liver problems.

    Where did you grow up?

    I grew up in Brockton, Massachusetts about 30 miles outside of Boston.

    Where did you go to school?

    I received my bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from MIT in 1985 and then went on to medical school at George Washington University in Washington D.C. I then continued with a pediatric residency at the U.S. Air Force Medical Center and a Pediatric GI and Nutrition fellowship at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.

    What hobbies do you enjoy outside of work?

    I play basketball, and I also enjoy reading. James Michener is my favorite author. I like to do yard work and gardening, and I love to cook.

    What's your dream vacation?

    One month of touring Europe and ending in Israel.

    Do you have a favorite book?

    Lord of the Rings. I read the trilogy with my son when he was in 5th grade. We've shared the books and movies as a special bond since then.

    How about a favorite movie or TV show?

    I don't have a favorite, but I prefer comedies- happy shows and movies. My work days are filled with worrying about my patients. I don't like to see bad things happen to people when I don't need to, even if it's not real.

    Do you have a favorite sports team?

    I'm a Boston boy, so the Celtics, of course!

    If you could meet anyone (alive or not) who would it be?

    The answer to that question has changed, as I've gotten older. At one time, it was sports heroes, and then it was our ancient rabbis. Now, I think that I'd like to meet Ghandi and be able to better understand inner peace.

    Why did you choose pediatric gastroenterology as a specialty?

    It allows me to see patients with many different types of problems. For most of them, I can help make them better. Many of my patients have chronic diseases. I may not be able to cure them, but I can play a part in making them, their quality of life and their family's life, better. I get to have long relationships with many of my patients and their families. I also get to do procedures, which offers a little bit of change from the office.

    What do you enjoy most about your job?

    My relationships with my patients and their families.

    What's one thing that your patients and their families probably don't know about you?

    I love to cook and entertain family and friends.

    Do you have a favorite memory from working at Arnold Palmer Hospital?

    I don’t have a single favorite memory, but the memories that make me feel best are when a patient or family tells me thank you because I have affected their lives in a positive way.

  • How do you know when you’ve crossed the line from effective parenting to control freak?

    Growing up, it seemed like most of the parents I knew were struggling simply to manage the basics for their kids. Perhaps it was where and with whom I was raised, but it stands out to me in stark contrast to my parenting peers today. We aren’t struggling for the basics, but we are certainly struggling.

  • EpilepsyU presents a Q & A webinar on "epilepsy and children" with Dr. Davis

    This week, EpilepsyU, a part of the Epilepsy Association of Central Florida, hosted a Q & A webinar on “epilepsy and children” featuring Dr. Ron Davis, Pediatric Neurologist and Co-Director of Pediatric Epilepsy for the Level 4 Epilepsy Center at Arnold Palmer Hospital.