Hepatitis A: A-to-Z Guide from Diagnosis to Treatment to Prevention

Introduction to hepatitis A: Hepatitis is an illness of the liver. It can have many causes. The alphabet soup of hepatitis can be confusing for parents. Hepatitis A, B, C, D, E and G are all different viruses. They differ in their symptoms and in the way they are spread.

Haemophilus Influenzae: A-to-Z Guide from Diagnosis to Treatment to Prevention

Introduction to haemophilus influenzae: Not long ago H influenzae type b (Hib) was the number one cause of bacterial meningitis. More than half of the cases of Hib infection in the United States involve bacterial meningitis. Thankfully, Hib disease has plummeted by more than 99 percent since the Hib vaccine was introduced in 1988 – […]

Flu: A-to-Z Guide from Diagnosis to Treatment to Prevention

Introduction to the flu: For many people, cold and flu have become an inseparable pair, like salt and pepper or New Year’s and weight loss. Walking down the “cold and flu” aisle of any drugstore, you will find stacks of bright boxes with bold claims of help for those suffering from a cold or the […]

Encephalitis: A-to-Z Guide from Diagnosis to Treatment to Prevention

Introduction to encephalitis: West Nile virus frightens many parents because it can cause a type of infection called encephalitis. What is encephalitis? Meningitis is primarily an inflammation of the lining of the brain and spinal cord, and sometimes of the brain itself. Encephalitis is primarily an inflammation of the brain. Most of the time, the […]

Diphtheria: A-to-Z Guide from Diagnosis to Treatment to Prevention

Introduction to diphtheria: Once called “the strangling angel of children,” diphtheria was a dreaded common childhood illness for more than 2,000 years before modern medicine made it a rarity. In areas where diphtheria vaccination is uncommon, diphtheria would meet the criteria to be a powerful weapon of bioterrorism. It has many similarities to anthrax.

Type 1 Diabetes: A-to-Z Guide from Diagnosis to Treatment to Prevention

Introduction to type 1 diabetes: When a child starts drinking more or urinating more frequently, the thought of type 1 diabetes (and now type 2 diabetes) often springs into the parents’ minds. When should parents be concerned? What is diabetes? In healthy children a hormone called insulin pushes sugar from the blood into the body’s […]

Cough: A-to-Z Guide from Diagnosis to Treatment to Prevention

Introduction to cough: Your home calms at night, the children are tucked into bed – but then loud coughing replaces the silence. It’s impressive that a body so small can cough so loud. What is it? Coughing is an important part of the body’s defense system. It forcefully propels unwanted invaders up and out of […]

Croup: A-to-Z Guide from Diagnosis to Treatment to Prevention

Introduction to croup: Picture this scene: A couple is spending a quiet evening at home with their one-year-old daughter, who has had a bit of a cold. At about 8 o’clock she begins coughing — an unusually loud, resonant cough. Over the next few hours, the sporadic cough becomes increasingly frequent. She gets a fever.

Chickenpox: A-to-Z Guide from Diagnosis to Treatment to Prevention

Introduction to chickenpox: Chickenpox is one of the classic childhood diseases. A young child covered in pox and out of school for a week is a typical scene. The first half of the week feels miserable from itching; the second half miserable from boredom. Since the introduction of the chickenpox vaccine, classic chickenpox is becoming […]

Arboviruses: A-to-Z Guide from Diagnosis to Treatment to Prevention

Introduction to arboviruses: The West Nile virus has been in the news in recent years, but it is only one example of the arboviruses, a group than can and does cause serious illness. The La Crosse virus, for example, causes more damage each year than West Nile. What are arboviruses? The arboviruses (arthropod-borne viruses) are […]

Anthrax: A-to-Z Guide from Diagnosis to Treatment to Prevention

Introduction to anthrax: Even in the best of times, being a parent can bring moments of fear. Our children are such treasures. When people intentionally want to frighten and kill us, I believe parents feel it more acutely than most. Anthrax scares can be particularly frightening to parents. What is it? Anthrax is a bacterial […]

Autism on the Rise

Can you trust statistics? Back in 1999, a report from California’s Department of Developmental Services, concluded that the number of children with profound autism had grown from 2,778 in 1987 to 10,360 in 1999 — an increase of 273 percent! The study did not include the milder end of the spectrum, such as Asperger syndrome. […]

Flu Vaccine Recommendations for Children Under Four

Each year the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) makes recommendations about who should get the influenza vaccine. The focus of the flu shot campaign among healthy people has been on people aged 65 and older, because they have been considered to be at the highest risk for flu-related complications and hospitalization. However, it turns […]

Repeat Chickenpox

Parents express their concern that the chickenpox vaccine might not give lifelong immunity. These parents sometimes want their children to catch “real chickenpox” as kids so that they will never get it as adults.

Immunization Timing Matters

Dr. Greene’s take on immunization timing: I often hear from parents who like to modify their children’s immunization schedules for one reason or another. According to a warning issued in the November 30, 2001, issue of the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, when the MMR vaccine and the chicken pox vaccine are given on […]

Thimerosal (Mercury)-Containing Vaccines

The highly respected Institute of Medicine has completed its Immunization Safety Review: Thimerosal-Containing Vaccines and Neurodevelopmental Disorders (October 2001). They strongly urge removing all mercury from vaccines, as part of the overall effort to reduce mercury exposure in children.

Kids Feel Pain!

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the American Pain Society have issued a September 2001 policy statement calling for pediatricians to respect and manage the pain that children feel from injuries, illnesses, and (too often) from medical procedures.

A War For Children’s Health

In 1988, polio still ravaged about 350,000 new people each year, causing damage that will last for the rest of their lives. The World Health Organization, UNICEF, the CDC, and Rotary International saw that polio could be entirely eradicated from the world. Their aim is to have it gone by 2005. So far, they have […]

College and Meningitis

When your child first packs up and heads off for college, it is a bittersweet moment. How horrible if meningitis were to make the separation permanent. The first year is the critical time. Freshmen living in dormitories are at the greatest risk — more than 7 times higher than undergraduates in general — according to […]