Following a rapid increase from 1980 to 2001, the prevalence of obesity among school-age children and adolescents in the United States has plateaued. Few studies have examined obesity trends among younger children in the past decade, and findings are inconsistent.

Among children aged <6 years at this multisite pediatric practice, the prevalence of obesity was fairly stable during 1999–2003, but substantially decreased during 2004–2008. This decrease was smaller among children insured by Medicaid than children insured by non-Medicaid health plans. (Read the full article)

A single inhalation of laninamivir octanoate has previously been shown to be as effective as repeated doses of zanamivir in vitro and in vivo, but it is not known whether this is also the case for children.

Median time to fever resolution was not significantly different between laninamivir octanoate and zanamivir for pediatric patients with influenza. The severity of influenza symptoms and the frequency of complications were similar in the 2 groups. (Read the full article)

Observation studies and short-term prospective intervention studies have shown that physical activity positively affects the accrual of bone mass and size during growth; however, fracture risk has not been evaluated.

This study reports the long-term results of a prospective intervention with increased physical activity at a population-based level and for the first time evaluated the clinical relevant end point, fracture risk. (Read the full article)

The rapidly rising prevalence of overweight and obesity among children and adolescents over the past 4 decades is a significant public health concern. Experts urge pediatric health care providers to provide routine obesity screening and counseling.

We provide the first nationally representative estimates of the rate of screening and counseling for adolescent obesity by pediatric health professionals. We also examine how socioeconomic factors and access to health care affect whether adolescents receive these services. (Read the full article)

Previous studies show beneficial effects of cycled lighting in neonatal care on infant day–night activity, sleep behavior, and postnatal growth. The American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommend neonatal care under cycled lighting conditions.

This study found that cycled lighting during neonatal care reduces infant’s fussing and crying behavior at 5 and 11 weeks’ corrected age and improves growth during neonatal period. These findings support the introduction of cycled lighting in neonatal care practice. (Read the full article)

Materialism and life satisfaction are known to be associated with each other. Research among adults has shown that materialism and life satisfaction negatively affect each other, leading to a downward spiral.

In contrast to research conducted among adults, no longitudinal effect of materialism on life satisfaction was found for 8- to 11-year-olds. However, life satisfaction did negatively affect materialism, but only for children who were frequently exposed to advertising. (Read the full article)

Retinal hemorrhages occur in accidental and inflicted traumatic brain injury (ITBI) and some medical encephalopathies. Large numbers and peripherally located retinal hemorrhages are frequently cited as distinguishing features of ITBI in infants, but the predictive value has not been established.

This prospective retinal imaging study found that a diagnosis of ITBI in infants and children can be distinguished from other traumatic and nontraumatic causes by the presence of >25 dot-blot (intraretinal layer) hemorrhages (positive predictive value = 93%). (Read the full article)

Social and environmental risks related to substandard housing contribute to adverse health outcomes. Partnerships between the health care and legal systems can help families address such risks and help clinicians understand the legal context of health.

A medical-legal partnership colocated in a pediatric primary care setting identified and treated a large cluster of poor quality, substandard housing. Housing improvements were possible because of strong collaboration between clinicians, attorneys, community partners, and families. (Read the full article)

Autism spectrum disorders are characterized by heterogeneous severity. Previous latent variable analyses of longitudinal data have focused on trajectories of related features such as IQ, and not on changes over time in standardized, observational measures of core autism symptoms.

Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule–calibrated severity scores allow comparisons of observational data from toddlerhood to adolescence. This first report of latent autism severity trajectory classes indicates that most children show stability in core symptom severity over many years; small groups improved or worsened. (Read the full article)

The effect of substandard housing on children’s risk of diseases such as asthma has been studied; little is known about how it affects child injury risk. Pediatricians actively promote injury prevention but typically without regard to housing quality.

Low-income children are likely living in substandard homes, which is significantly associated with not having working smoke alarms and safe hot water temperatures. Pediatricians can use these results to inform anticipatory guidance. (Read the full article)

Children born small for gestational age (SGA) have increased risk of perinatal morbidity and mortality, neonatal death, and cerebral palsy (CP). Causes of SGA, such as congenital malformations, intrauterine infections, and preeclampsia, are also risk factors for the same outcomes.

In 90% of singletons born SGA, CP is apparently of prenatal origin. Low proportions of intrapartum events leading to CP could not be fully explained by a higher neonatal mortality rate in SGA than in non-SGA children. (Read the full article)

Neonatal respiratory distress syndrome is the most common respiratory cause of mortality and morbidity among US infants aged <1 year. Although neonatal respiratory distress syndrome is a heritable disorder, common genetic variants do not fully explain disease heritability.

Single ABCA3 mutations are overrepresented among term and late preterm (≥34 weeks’ gestation) European-descent infants with RDS. Although ABCA3 mutations are individually rare, they are collectively common in the European- and African-descent general population, present in ~4% of individuals. (Read the full article)

Chlorhexidine cleansing of the cord can reduce mortality in high-risk settings. Time to separation may increase with topical applications of chlorhexidine; 1 previous community trial quantified this increase and did not measure whether caretakers perceived the delay.

Single and multiple cleansing of the umbilical cord increases time to separation by ~50%, or an average of 2 to 2.5 days. Caretakers were able to detect this difference and expressed dissatisfaction, while still accepting the intervention. (Read the full article)

Excess tissue oxygenation should be avoided during neonatal resuscitation, especially in premature infants. Delivered oxygen concentrations when using a self-inflating bag (SIB) at oxygen flows <1 L/min remain to be established.

Low oxygen concentrations (30%– 40%) can be delivered with a SIB at an oxygen flow <1 L/min. A practical scheme has been developed correlating the oxygen flow rate and the corresponding delivered fraction of oxygen when using a neonatal SIB. (Read the full article)

Cognitive and motor developmental test scores of preterm and late preterm infants increase with gestational age. Developmental test scores in full-term infants have not previously been considered to relate to gestational age.

In a cohort of healthy, full-term infants, 37 to 41 weeks, 12-month mental and psychomotor scores on the Bayley Scales of Infant Development increased with gestational age, suggesting that neurodevelopment is optimal in infants born at 39 to 41 weeks. (Read the full article)

Neonatal mortality rate and causes of death have been relatively stable in recent years. Decision-making practices preceding death of sick neonates affect the circumstances of death. These practices vary worldwide according to the team approach and local population background.

Although our population is mostly religious, we observed a decline in maximal intensive care along with increasing redirection of care over a decade. Changes in the team approach and increasing level of parental involvement influence type and duration of treatment. (Read the full article)

The incidence of permanent hearing loss doubles between birth and school age. Otoacoustic emissions screening has been used successfully in early childhood educational settings to identify children with losses not found through newborn screening.

Using otoacoustic emissions to screen the hearing of young children during routine health care visits is feasible and can lead to the identification of permanent hearing loss overlooked by providers relying solely on subjective methods. (Read the full article)

Pneumococcal conjugate vaccines are effective in preventing pneumococcal disease but are also costly. Although the current US immunization schedule recommends 4 doses, many countries have adopted 3-dose schedules that have worked well, but may provide less protection against pneumococcal disease.

Changing the US 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine schedule from 3 to 2 primary doses while keeping a booster dose would save $412 million annually but might lead to moderate increases in pneumococcal disease, especially otitis media and pneumonia. (Read the full article)

Previous research on potential deleterious effects of typically developing children growing up in households with children with disability has produced mixed results. Research methods have been cited as a problem in many studies.

This is the largest known empirical study comparing functional impairment in siblings living with a child with disability and siblings residing with children who are typically developing. This study also follows the trajectory of functional impairment across 2 measurement periods. (Read the full article)

Data available before the 1990s in addition to small studies with clinical populations have shown that ocular growth and development differ between extremely preterm and term-born children.

Contemporary data on long-term visual outcomes indicate that adolescents born extremely low birth weight and/or extremely preterm exhibit more visual sensory and perceptual morbidity than adolescents born at term. (Read the full article)

Readmissions have been identified as a priority area for pediatric inpatient quality measurement nationally. However, it is unknown whether readmission rates vary meaningfully across hospitals and how many hospitals would be identified as high- or low-performers.

Only a few hospitals that care for children are high- or low-performers when their condition-specific revisit rates are compared with average rates across hospitals. This limits the usefulness of condition-specific readmission or revisit measures in pediatric quality measurement. (Read the full article)

The overall incidence of pediatric celiac disease (CD) is rising, as are other autoimmune conditions. Additionally, increasing numbers of children are older at the point of diagnosis and are diagnosed with CD through active screening.

Accounting for screened and nonclassic cases, there is an independent 2.5-fold rise in the incidence of classically presenting cases of pediatric CD (Oslo definitions). Thus, indicating a true rise in pediatric CD incidence in southeast Scotland in 20 years. (Read the full article)

Preterm infants are born with low serum levels and low body stores of tocopherol. Serum levels ≥0.5 mg/dL are required for protection against lipid peroxidation. Previous studies have shown good intestinal absorption of vitamin E given intragastrically to preterm infants.

Serum α-tocopherol increases after a single 50-IU/kg dose of vitamin E as dl-α-tocopheryl acetate given intragastrically to very preterm infants soon after birth; however, 30% of infants still have serum α-tocopherol level <0.5 mg/dL 24 hours after dosing. (Read the full article)

Stable health insurance coverage facilitates access to health care. Despite expanded coverage options for children, parents report barriers to accessing insurance programs for their children, including uncertainty about a child’s coverage status and eligibility.

Electronic health records can be used as an emerging data source for conducting health insurance surveillance to track trends in patients’ insurance coverage status, and to identify patients who may benefit from outreach and support to obtain and maintain coverage. (Read the full article)

Previous studies have confirmed feasibility of MRI for diagnosis of appendicitis in adults and children. No study has assessed clinical end points when using ultrasound and MRI compared with computed tomography for diagnosis of appendicitis in children.

Radiation-free imaging with ultrasound selectively followed by MRI does not change clinical endpoints compared with CT for diagnosing appendicitis in children, with no difference in time to antibiotic administration, time to appendectomy, negative appendectomy rate, perforation rate, or length of stay. (Read the full article)

Food insecurity is best measured by comprehensive assessments. However, rapid assessments can be useful in certain circumstances, but their validity is not characterized.

Rapid assessment of food insecurity is feasible among Inuit adults and children. (Read the full article)

The definition of hypertension in children is complex because of the age-, gender-, and height-specific blood pressure algorithm. Blood pressure to height ratio was reported to easily identify hypertension in Chinese children living in a local area (Hebei Province).

Blood pressure to height ratio index is simple and accurate for screening for prehypertension and hypertension in Chinese children aged 6 to 17 years and can be used for early screening or treating Chinese children with hypertension. (Read the full article)

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that health departments in all 50 states deliver AFIX (Assessment, Feedback, Incentives, and eXchange) consultations to 25% of federally funded vaccine providers each year. AFIX effectively raises vaccination coverage among young children.

AFIX consultations achieved short-term gains in coverage for 11- to 12-year-olds for vaccines in the adolescent platform. No gains occurred for older adolescents or over the long term. Consultations were equally effective when delivered in-person or by webinar. (Read the full article)

There is growing support for adopting the milliliter as the standard unit for liquid medication instruction; teaspoon and tablespoon units can be confusing and may endorse kitchen spoon use. There are concerns that parents may not understand milliliter-based instructions.

Parents who used milliliter-only units made fewer dosing errors than those who used teaspoon or tablespoon units. Moving to a milliliter-only standard could reduce confusion and decrease medication errors, especially for parents with low health literacy and non-English speakers. (Read the full article)

Children born very preterm (VPT) are at high risk of educational delay. School readiness has been identified as a potentially useful clinical framework for early detection of those at greatest risk. However, evidence to support its predictive validity is limited.

VPT preschoolers are at risk of impairment across the 5 American Academy of Pediatrics school readiness domains. The number of domains affected predicted likelihood of later learning problems, supporting the utility of schoolreadiness frameworks for identifying children needing surveillance and/or support. (Read the full article)

The single-family room (SFR) NICU is a major response to improve care and reduce developmental morbidity in preterm infants. However, no studies have examined how and why this model is associated with changes in medical and neurobehavioral outcome.

This study shows improved medical and neurodevelopmental outcome in infants hospitalized in the SFR model of care. More important, improvements occurred specifically in relation to increases in maternal involvement and developmental support afforded by the SFR environment. (Read the full article)

In HIV-infected children, decisions to start antiretroviral therapy must weigh immunologic benefits against potential risks. Current guidelines recommend using CD4 percentage and age when deciding to start treatment. Population-level effects of these factors on immunologic recovery are unknown.

Starting antiretroviral therapy at higher CD4 percentages and younger ages maximizes potential for immunologic recovery. However, not all benefits are sustained, and viral failure may occur. Our results help clinicians better weigh immunologic benefits against viral failure risks. (Read the full article)

Cyber dating abuse victimization has been correlated with physical, sexual, and psychological adolescent relationship abuse.

This is the first clinic-based study of cyber dating abuse. Forty-one percent of youth reported cyber dating abuse victimization, female more than male respondents. Compared with nonexposed youth, abuse victims reported more sexual assault; female victims reported more contraceptive nonuse and reproductive coercion. (Read the full article)

Although pediatric professional guidelines emphasize addressing a child’s social environment in the context of well child care, it remains unclear whether screening for unmet basic needs at visits increases low-income families’ receipt of community-based resources.

This study demonstrates that systematically screening and referring for social determinants of health during primary care can lead to the receipt of more community resources for families. (Read the full article)

It is unclear whether developmental delays observed among infants with single-suture craniosynostosis (SSC) persist at school age. Few neurodevelopmental studies have examined children with SSC beyond age 3, with most having methodological limitations.

This study is the first to follow and test infants with SSC and a control group at school age. Infancy delays among children with SSC persisted at school age in some areas (IQ, math) but not others (reading, spelling). (Read the full article)

Myxovirus resistance protein A (MxA) is a protein induced during viral infections. A few small-scale studies have suggested that MxA could be used as a marker of viral infection in clinical routine practice.

This study involves the largest patient population thus far and confirms the usefulness of MxA for diagnosing viral infections in children consulting the emergency department in a clinical routine setting. (Read the full article)

Clinical pain assessment methods in youth are vulnerable to underestimation bias and underrecognition. Facial expressions are sensitive, specific biomarkers of the presence and severity of pain. Computer vision–based pattern recognition enables measurement of pain-related facial expressions from video.

This study demonstrates initial validity for developing computer vision algorithms for automated pain assessment in children. The system developed and tested in this study could provide standardized, continuous, and valid patient monitoring that is potentially scalable. (Read the full article)

Discharge from the NICU requires coordination and may be delayed for nonmedical reasons. Predicting when patients will be medically ready for discharge can avoid these delays and result in cost savings for the hospital.

We developed a supervised machine learning approach using real-time patient data from the daily neonatology progress note to predict when patients will be medically ready for discharge. (Read the full article)

The American Academy of Pediatrics discourages providers from dismissing families who refuse vaccines for their children, yet some providers continue to do so.

We show that ~1 in 5 pediatricians dismiss families who refuse vaccines, and there is significant regional variation in the practice. Dismissing families for refusing vaccines was also associated with stricter state nonmedical exemption policies. (Read the full article)

Political numeracy is as important as it is overlooked, argues Wellesley mathematics professor Ismar Volić.

Twenty-two students recently graduated from Penn College at Wellsboro’s practical nursing program, the first to fulfill their requirements at a facility dedicated in May.

Educators are wrestling with tough questions as more schools embrace personalized learning and its accompanying belief in giving students more control over their academic experiences.

The growing popularity of voice-activated technologies is forcing educators to think about the role such tools play in preparing students for the jobs of the future.

One of Azerbaijan's top young female talents gives you some advice to improve your passing.

In this episode of the podcast, Tom chats with Tim Stuart about his new book, Personalized Learning in a PLC at Work: Student Agency Through the Four Critical Questions.

Saudi Arabian equities slumped on concern the U.S. may take measures against the kingdom if it’s linked to the disappearance of Washington Post writer Jamal Khashoggi.

The heads of Deutsche Bank and Siemens, two of Germany’s biggest companies, are among a dwindling number of high-profile delegates still scheduled to attend an investment conference in Saudi Arabia following the disappearance of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Government went to war against Covid-19 with very low supplies in citizen trust and financial reserves, says Solly Moeng.