Over 180 people of all ages unite in Costa Rica for the annual international outreach of OM Central America.

A team from OM Costa Rica hikes three days in the jungle of Talamanca to meet a witch doctor.

An OM Arts student shares how picking up trash led to sharing the gospel in Israel.

OM Director's Update from Lawrence Tong, International Director

OM Director's Update from Lawrence Tong, International Director

"Today’s stark reality is that more than 2.8 billion people have not heard this message of hope and transformation—and 57,000 people are added to this number daily. When I heard this, I was deeply impacted, and resolved that I want to be part of changing that trajectory."

OM Director's Update from Lawrence Tong, International Director

OM Director's Update from Lawrence Tong, International Director

OM Director's Update from Lawrence Tong, International Director

OM Director's Update from Lawrence Tong, International Director

OM Director's Update from Lawrence Tong, International Director.

OM Director's Update from Lawrence Tong, International Director

OM Update from Lawrence Tong, International Director

OM Director's Update from Lawrence Tong, International Director

OM Director's Update by Lawrence Tong, International DIrector

OM Director's Update from Lawrence Tong

OM Director's Update from Lawrence Tong, International director

OM Director's Update from Lawrence Tong, International Director

OM Director's Update from Lawrence Tong

OM Director's Update from Lawrence Tong, International Director

OM Director's Update from Lawrence Tong

THE Through the Keyhole Pandemic Special has certainly given rise to some entertaining sights.

The recent Chicago Teachers Union strike drew attention from Democratic presidential candidates in Illinois, a state won by Democrats in the last White House contest. For 2020, it's possible we could see a twist on that story: big-city teacher strikes in states with less predictable outcomes.

Hamish Wilson, radio producer and actor

Born: July 9, 1938;

Two high school basketball coaches and an assistant principal/athletic director are facing criminal charges stemming from an alleged hazing incident that resulted in the hospitalization of a 15-year-old boy.

Setting districtwide priorities for SEL and supporting teachers is essential to ensuring consistency, says Atlanta’s director of social-emotional learning in this Q&A.

Hosts Istanbul have the early initiative in Group A after a stunning long-range strike from Serkan Uysal, a free-kick and a late penalty earned a 3-0 win against Ukraine's Ingulec.

Source: Retema - La Comisión Europea ha aprobado un conjunto de inversiones por valor de 222 millones de euros procedentes del presupuesto de la UE para facilitar la transición de Europa hacia un futuro más sostenible e hipocarbónico en el marco del programa LIFE de medio ambiente y acción por el clima. La financiación de la UE movilizará inversiones adicionales con las que se llegará a un total de 379 millones de euros destinados a 139 nuevos proyectos en 20 Estados miembros.

The swirl of attention around Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren’s story of being forced out of a teaching job when she was pregnant intensifies the spotlight on her background and K-12 credentials.

The recent Chicago Teachers Union strike drew attention from Democratic presidential candidates in Illinois, a state won by Democrats in the last White House contest. For 2020, it's possible we could see a twist on that story: big-city teacher strikes in states with less predictable outcomes.

Cardiovascular risk factors predict the development of premature atherosclerosis. As the number of risk factors increases, so does the extent of these lesions. Assessment of cardiovascular risk factors is an accepted practice in adults but is not used in pediatrics.

In this study, the authors discuss how the presence of ≥2 cardiovascular risk factors is associated with vascular changes in adolescents. The findings were compared with the Patholobiological Determinants of Atherosclerosis in Youth risk score to demonstrate that a simple method of clustering is a reliable tool to use in clinical practice. (Read the full article)

The National Children's Study, a large-scale, longitudinal, birth cohort study of US children that endeavors to identify preventable and environmental origins of chronic diseases, has begun recruitment.

In a highly diverse, urban setting, pregnant women can be recruited to participate in the National Children's Study at rates similar to those obtained in clinic settings. Refinements to the pregnancy screener and other components are needed to optimize implementation. (Read the full article)

The efficacy of intravenous immunoglobulin and corticosteroid pulse combination therapy for refractory Kawasaki disease has been established. The Egami score can be used to predict which patients are likely to have refractory Kawasaki disease.

As a new strategy for primary treatment, intravenous immunoglobulin and corticosteroid pulse combination therapy is safe and effective for patients predicted to have refractory Kawasaki disease based on the Egami score. (Read the full article)

Gallbladder disease in children is an evolving entity and studies suggest an increasing frequency of symptomatic pediatric gallbladder disease and resultant cholecystectomies.

Hispanic ethnicity and obesity are epidemiologically significant risk factors for symptomatic gallbladder disease in the pediatric population. (Read the full article)

Lactoferrin is a glycoprotein with anti-infective activities being part of the innate defensive network. Bovine and human lactoferrin share high homology. Bovine lactoferrin can prevent late-onset sepsis in preterm very low birth weight neonates.

In preterm very low birth weight infants, bovine lactoferrin is able to prevent not only late-onset sepsis but also systemic fungal infections. This protection is achieved independently from their colonization status. (Read the full article)

Previous research has demonstrated that young children with traumatic brain injury are at elevated risk of poor outcomes, particularly following severe injuries. These deficits persist until at least 5 years postinsult. Factors predicting outcomes in this age group have not been established.

This study follows survivors of very early traumatic brain injury into adolescence. Results indicate that severe injury is associated with poorest outcome, but after 3 years, the gap between children with severe traumatic brain injury and peers stabilizes. (Read the full article)

Prone sleep, bed-sharing, maternal smoking during pregnancy, and prematurity increase the risk of sudden infant death syndrome. The sudden infant death syndrome rate initially declined dramatically after the initiation of the US Back-to-Sleep campaign in 1994, but subsequently plateaued.

The risk profile has changed since the Back-to-Sleep campaign; the prevalence of simultaneous risks has remained consistent. Intrinsic and extrinsic risks provide unification into 1 underlying triple-risk model and insights into potential underlying mechanisms. (Read the full article)

Autism is widely considered a heterogeneous disorder in terms of etiology and phenotype. Although autism is usually a lifelong disorder, little is known about the rate or timing of how children develop regarding their communication and social functioning.

Utilizing annual evaluations for a large population of children with autism, we describe the 6 most common trajectories from diagnosis through age 14 years. Trajectories revealed considerable variation, and high socioeconomic status children were more likely to experience rapid improvement. (Read the full article)

Rural Alaska children have high rates of hospitalization with lower respiratory tract infections from a variety of pathogens. Past studies of risk factors for respiratory syncytial virus infection associated medically high-risk status, household crowding, and infant feeding practices with hospitalization.

This study reveals the importance of medically high-risk status and infant feeding practices as important factors in respiratory hospitalization. In addition, we identified woodstove use and the absence of 2 or more sinks in household as risk factors for hospitalization. (Read the full article)

Cross-sectional imaging can reduce the negative appendectomy rate (NAR) in children being evaluated for suspected appendicitis; however, the ability of diagnostic imaging to decrease NAR may vary by age and gender.

Cross-sectional imaging leads to a significant reduction in NAR for children younger than 5 years and girls older than 10 years. For boys older than 5 years being evaluated for uncomplicated appendicitis, advanced imaging appears to have limited value. (Read the full article)

Valid parental permission requires that the decision be both informed and voluntary. Previous research has focused on the informational components of decision-making (eg, disclosure and understanding), with little empirical attention to the voluntariness of decisions.

We address this gap by examining the voluntariness of parents making research or treatment decisions in pediatric oncology. We identify demographic and contextual correlates of voluntariness and highlight the clinical implications of the findings for physicians and investigators. (Read the full article)

Overweight and obese children have a higher prevalence of several cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors. There is growing evidence demonstrating that CVD risk factors present during childhood persist into adulthood.

US adolescents had no significant change in prehypertension/hypertension and borderline-high/ high low-density lipoprotein cholesterol prevalence from 1999–2000 to 2007–2008; however, prediabetes/diabetes increased by 14%. (Read the full article)

Survival of children born with Down syndrome has been improving, but few studies have used population-based data to examine the influence of fetal and maternal characteristics on survival.

This study examined predictors of survival for children born with Down syndrome using population-based data from the UK Northern Congenital Abnormality Survey and shows that year of birth, gestational age, birth weight, and presence of additional anomalies influence survival status. (Read the full article)

There is a paucity of controlled studies of recombinant factor VIIa (rFVIIa) use for off-label indications in pediatric patients. Data on the use of off-label rFVIIa, including safety and efficacy, are mostly limited to case reports or small case series.

This is the largest reported case series of off-label rFVIIa in pediatric patients from a well-designed, representative, and rigorously audited registry of rFVIIa use and describes the indications for use, dose administered, adverse events, and outcomes in 388 patients. (Read the full article)

Death or neurodevelopmental impairment in extremely premature neonates can be predicted at birth by considering gender, antenatal steroids, multiple birth, birth weight, and gestational age.

Prediction of death or neurodevelopmental impairment in extremely premature infants is improved by using information available later during the clinical course. The importance of birth weight declines, whereas that of respiratory illness severity increases with advancing postnatal age. (Read the full article)

Male circumcision reduces risk of HIV acquisition in men by 60% and is associated with other health benefits. Compared with adult circumcision, infant male circumcision is safer, less expensive, and represents a cost-saving intervention for HIV prevention in many settings.

IMC is little known in East Africa and is not routinely practiced. This is the first study to assess acceptability and uptake of IMC in East Africa among parents who were actually offered the procedure. (Read the full article)

Celiac disease is an immunologic disorder with autoimmune features. Sweden experienced an epidemic of celiac disease in infants (1984–1996). Early vaccinations might influence the risk for autoimmune diseases, and could potentially have contributed to celiac disease risk and the epidemic.

Early vaccinations within the national Swedish program are not risk factors for celiac disease, nor do changes over time contribute to explaining the Swedish epidemic. A protective effect by vaccination against tuberculosis (bacillus Calmette-Guérin) is suggested. (Read the full article)

Because most childhood tuberculosis cases are sputum smear-negative, diagnosis relies largely upon clinical presentation, tuberculin skin testing, and chest radiograph. Diagnostic limitations contribute to treatment delays and high mortality. However, childhood tuberculosis (TB) mortality risk factors are not well documented.

This study demonstrates that false-negative TST is common in children with active TB and is associated with increased risk of death. A negative TST should not delay anti-TB therapy. Improved diagnostic modalities are urgently needed in resource-limited settings. (Read the full article)

Loud snoring, which spikes at ~2 to 3 years of age, has been associated with behavior problems in school-aged children in cross-sectional studies, but no longitudinal studies have quantified predictors and the behavioral impact of persistent snoring in preschool-aged children.

Persistent loud snoring, which occurs in 9% of children 2 to 3 years of age, is linked with behavior problems. Higher socioeconomic status and a history of breastfeeding were associated with lower rates of transient and persistent snoring in young children. (Read the full article)