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Source: PediatricEducation.org
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Total 26 results found since Jan 2013.
What Are the Classifications of Perinatal Stroke?
Discussion
Perinatal stroke occurs in about 1:1000 live births and is a “focal vascular injury from the fetal period to 28 days postnatal age.” Perinatal stroke is the most common cause of hemiparetic cerebral palsy and causes other significant morbidity including cognitive deficits, learning disabilities, motor problems, sensory problems including visual and hearing disorders, epilepsy, and behavioral and psychological problems. Family members are also affected because of the potential anxiety and guilt feelings that having a child with a stroke presents, along with the care that may be needed over the child&#...
Source: PediatricEducation.org - May 1, 2023 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Pediatric Education Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news
Can Patent Foramen Ovales Cause Problems?
Discussion
During fetal development, the heart primum and secundum septa grow and overlap leaving a small but important channel between the two atria. The foramen ovale is a flap valve moving blood from the right atrium into the left atrium directly and bypassing the high pressure pulmonary system. After birth and breathing air, the neonate’s lungs open up and the pulmonary vascular resistance decreases. The left atrium now has a relatively higher pressure than the right atria, and therefore pressure on the flap valve closes the foramen ovale. Usually within 6-12 months, the fusion of the primum and secundum of the f...
Source: PediatricEducation.org - July 24, 2023 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Pediatric Education Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news
What Causes Facial Nerve Palsy?
Discussion
Facial nerve palsy has been known for centuries, but in 1821 unilateral facial nerve paralysis was described by Sir Charles Bell. Bell’s palsy (BP) is a unilateral, acute facial paralysis that is clinically diagnosed after other etiologies have been excluded by appropriate history, physical examination and/or laboratory testing or imaging. Symptoms include abnormal movement of facial nerve. It can be associated with changes in facial sensation, hearing, taste or excessive tearing. The right and left sides are equally affected but bilateral BP is rare (0.3%). Paralysis can be complete or incomplete at prese...
Source: PediatricEducation.org - June 3, 2019 Category: Pediatrics Authors: pediatriceducationmin Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news
What Types of Memory Impairments are There in Children?
Discussion
Memory is an important part of what distinguishes higher order species from others. Memory also is part of one’s self-identity. Difficulties in short-term memory can make common, everyday tasks difficult for the person experiencing the problem particularly if it recently occurred and the person’s long-term memory is intact. Difficulties with long-term memory can also have problems when language, events or even one’s own identity are affected. For some people the memory loss is temporary but for others, memory impairments are permanent and must be accepted and accommodated as part of the overall...
Source: PediatricEducation.org - March 30, 2020 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Pediatric Education Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news
What Causes Muscle Weakness?
Discussion
Muscle tone is the slight tension that is felt in a muscle when it is voluntarily relaxed. It can be assessed by asking the patient to relax and then taking the muscles through a range of motion such as moving the wrists, forearm and upper arm. Muscle strength is the muscle’s force against active resistance. Impaired strength is called weakness or paresis. There are 5 levels of muscle strength.
0 = No muscle contraction detected
1 = Barely detected flicker of contraction
2 = Active movement with gravity eliminated
3 = Active movement against gravity
4 = Active movement against gravity and some resistance
...
Source: PediatricEducation.org - December 9, 2013 Category: Pediatrics Authors: pediatriceducationmin Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news
What Causes Ataxia?
Discussion
Coordination and balance problems are caused by various problems affecting the central and peripheral nervous system. Normal development of a child or weakness of a child are commonly mistaken for true ataxia. Ataxia specifically refers to “…impairment of the coordination of movement without loss of muscle strength.” If it is purely due to abnormalities of the cerebellum then there should be no changes in mental status, sensation or weakness. Sometimes it is difficult to determine if there are abnormalities in other areas. For example, Guillian-Barre often presents with difficulty or clumsy wal...
Source: PediatricEducation.org - March 31, 2014 Category: Pediatrics Authors: pediatriceducationmin Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news
When Can A Child Start Strength Training?
Discussion
Exercise is an important part of health and daily life. A review of recommendations for general exercise for children and adults can be found here. Many people use pedometers as a marker of their activity and a list of activities and their equivalent steps can be found here.
The benefits of strength training includes improved performance, injury prevention and rehabilitation, improved cardiovascular fitness, improved bone mineral density, improved blood lipid profiles and mental health. Improvements in strength can be found in properly structured programs of at least 8 weeks duration occurring at least 1-2 time...
Source: PediatricEducation.org - May 12, 2014 Category: Pediatrics Authors: pediatriceducationmin Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news
What Are the Essential Amino Acids and How Much Protein Do I Need?
Discussion
Vegetarians have a diet pattern that emphasizes consuming plant foods (i.e. vegetables, grains and nuts) and avoiding flesh food (i.e. red meat, poultry, fish). Some vegetarians include milk and egg products in their diets and would be more accurately described as lacto-ova-vegetarians. Vegans are vegetarians who avoid all animal products including foods such as dairy products, eggs, butter, honey and gelatin.
One of the most common questions that vegetarian are asked is about how they obtain enough protein from their diets. In general, a mixed diet of a variety of foods with appropriate calories should provide...
Source: PediatricEducation.org - September 29, 2014 Category: Pediatrics Authors: pediatriceducationmin Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news
What is the Remission Rate for Antithyroid Drug Treatment for Hyperthyroidism in Children?
Discussion
The thyroid gland secrets two hormones – T4 which is a prohormone and T3 which is the biologically active hormone. Receptors for T3 are found in nearly all body tissues. T3 regulates metabolism and energy production. Organs most affected are the heart, liver and central nervous system as well as growth of the fetus and child. Hyperthyroidism is common with a prevalence rate of about 1-2% for women and 0.2% for men. The most common cause of thyrotoxicosis is Grave’s disease where autoantibodies to thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) exist. These autoantibodies attach to thyroid tissue TSH receptors and...
Source: PediatricEducation.org - January 26, 2015 Category: Pediatrics Authors: pediatriceducationmin Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news
What Are Common Inherited Thrombophilias?
Discussion
Thrombophilia is the increased risk of thromboembolic disease due to a disorder. Thrombophilia can be inherited or acquired (such as antiphospholipid syndrome). The risk of thromboembolic events is much lower in children than adults.
At-risk patients should avoid:
Dehydration
Sitting for prolonged time periods during travel
Obesity
Smoking
Estrogen containing oral contraceptives
Common inherited thrombophilias include:
Prothrombin (Factor II mutation)
Second most common
Genetics: 1-2% prevalence is variable depending on location and ethnic background.
Cause: Abnormal point mutation of the prothrombin gene t...
Source: PediatricEducation.org - May 25, 2015 Category: Pediatrics Authors: pediatriceducationmin Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news
What Genetics are Associated with Multiple Sclerosis?
Discussion
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is “a chronic degenerative, often episodic disease of the central nervous system marked by patchy destruction of the myelin that surrounds and insulates nerve fibers, usually appearing in young adulthood and manifested by one or more mild to severe neural and muscular impairments, as spastic weakness in one or more limbs, local sensory losses, bladder dysfunction, or visual disturbances.”
It is a chronic disease and therefore symptoms must occur more than once. The first episode is called an acute demyelinating attack. Fifteen to forty-five percent of children with their first...
Source: PediatricEducation.org - April 4, 2016 Category: Pediatrics Authors: pediatriceducationmin Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news
What Causes Hyperammonemia?
Discussion
Reye’s syndrome (RS)is named for Dr. Douglas Reye who along with Drs. G. Morgan and J. Baral described encephalopathy and fatty accumulation and degeneration in children in a 1963 Lancet article. RS usually affects children but can occur at all ages. All organs can be affected but the liver and brain are primarily affected causing liver failure and encephalopathy as toxic metabolites (especially ammonia) accumulate, and intracranial hypertension and cerebral edema occurs. As the ammonia levels begin to rise (> 100 mg/dL) patients lose their appetite, have nausea and emesis and mental status changes whic...
Source: PediatricEducation.org - February 20, 2017 Category: Pediatrics Authors: pediatriceducationmin Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news
What Causes Microcephaly?
Discussion
Microcephaly is usually defined as an occipitofrontal head circumference (OFC) more than 2 standard deviations (SD) below the mean for sex, age and ethnicity. Severe microcephaly is used for OFC < 3 standard deviations. Rates of microcephaly range from 0.5-12 patients/10,000 live births.
The OFC should be measured at every well child visit and at other opportunities and plotted on standard growth charts. The OFC is measured using a nonelastic tape measure around the largest part of the head with the tape measure held above the eyebrows and ears. It is a highly reproducible measurement. There are several diff...
Source: PediatricEducation.org - September 25, 2017 Category: Pediatrics Authors: pediatriceducationmin Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news
Can Fish Oil Help Reading?
Discussion
Fats and fatty acids are essential for good human health.
Saturated fats have hydrogen pairs linked to each carbon on the carbon backbone. They are solid or semi-solid at room temperature. Common examples are butter, lard, or hardened vegetable shortening. They are linked to higher cholesterol and triglycerides and only a small amount of them are recommended to be consumed in the diet.
Unsaturated fats have one or more hydrogen atoms missing from the carbon backbone. They are liquid at room temperature.
Monounsaturated fatty acids have one hydrogen pair that is missing from the carbon backbone. They are liq...
Source: PediatricEducation.org - November 20, 2017 Category: Pediatrics Authors: pediatriceducationmin Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news
