All Search Results
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Get to know Dr. Patricia Wheeler, pediatric geneticist at Arnold Palmer Hospital
You could say that a pediatric geneticist is a modern-day Sherlock Holmes, working to solve the mystery of a child’s medical condition. Geneticists work with families to help determine whether a child’s illness could be caused by a change in a child’s DNA, the hereditary material that carries a person’s genetic information. Accompanied by a team of professionals, a geneticist also helps figure out whether this disorder is likely to be passed on to future generations and helps patients and families seek the best care for their condition. Some common inherited disorders that geneticists diagnose include autism, neurofibromatosis, Down syndrome, sickle cell disease and many more.
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What to tell your kids about vaping
One of the most challenging aspects of raising a teen or pre-teen is this: the environment in which they are growing up looks dramatically different than it did when we, their parents, were young.
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How should we communicate with other parents as our kids get older?
As a parent of a big kid, one who is not quite yet a teen but close to it, my husband and I have found that we are starting to allow our child more freedom to do things. He is hanging out with other kids more at our house and their houses. He’s riding his bike to his friend’s houses alone. This means that more and more often, we are trusting other parents to keep an eye on our kid and in turn, we are watching not only our son but his friends, too.
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Four things to know about concussions in kids
Concussions happen all the time. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, an estimated 3.8 million recreation and sports-related concussions occur in the US each year! And as brain injuries, every concussion needs to be taken seriously. Research is ongoing into the long-term effects of traumatic brain damage in both youth and adults, but in the meantime, here are some things you should you know about the injury and its implications for your child returning to school and play.
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How clinical trials make a difference in the lives of kids with cancer
This September is Pediatric Cancer Awareness Month. To truly understand how important this awareness month is to all pediatric oncology patients and their families, it’s important to recognize some of the key statistics regarding pediatric cancer.
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The many ways teens act out to harm themselves - and what you can do about it. (Part 1 of 3)
Finding out that your child is harming themselves can be shocking, confusing and concerning. Often, parents react in a way that make things worse for the child and the family in general. Given the complexity and importance of this topic, we’ll talk about it in three separate blog posts. In this first post, we’ll discuss ways in which teens may self-harm. Second, we’ll look at contributing factors and reasons why they do it. Lastly, we’ll talk about common red flags and practical exercises to help teens who are struggling. Understanding the contributing factors will help you make adjustments to the “big picture” instead of assuming that all the responsibility lies with the child. The practical exercises are based on the reasons why they do it because teens self-harm for different reasons. Therefore, you have to make sure you match the exercise appropriately.
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The real problem with hunger all around us
When we think of the word hunger, we imagine children who are thin and starving or of the feeling in our stomachs right before we have a meal. You might be shocked to learn, however, that one out of every seven Americans suffers from food insecurity. They do not know when they will have their next meal or where it will come from- some may even go to sleep without a warm meal.
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How swaddling your baby the wrong way can lead to hip dysplasia
Most people aren’t familiar with the term “hip dysplasia.” This little known condition is the leading cause of hip arthritis in young women and accounts for 10% of all total hip replacements in the United States.
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So your child has asthma, now what?
Asthma is a somewhat common childhood illness that affects nearly 1 in 10 children, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It is a condition that affects the airway of the lungs, making it difficult for your child to breathe when they are having an “attack.” Asthma can look very different from child to child, with some children showing daily symptoms and others only with vigorous exercise. The most important aspect of dealing with your child’s asthma is control and prevention.
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Performing Surgery in the Womb
A recent article in The New York Times brought awareness to the burgeoning field of surgery being performed on patients still inside the womb. The article chronicles the path of Joshuwa and Lexi Royer, a young couple from Texas who found out at their 13-week ultrasound that their son had spina bifida. As it turned out, the defect was severe, so the Royer’s traveled to Houston to hear more about the option of surgery.
