Richard Goldstein, MD, program director of Boston Children’s Robert’s Program on Sudden Unexpected Death in Pediatrics, meets with a bereaved family.
Despite worldwide efforts to promote safe sleep over the
years, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) continues to be the leading cause of
post-neonatal infant mortality in every advanced country in the world. More
infants die from unexplained infant deaths each year than children zero through
18 die from cancer.
For years, the standard practice for children with feeding tubes has been to provide them with commercially available formula as a source of complete nutrition. While some children have no difficulty tolerating these formulas, others may experience problems such as significant vomiting, diarrhea, retching or growth issues. For these patients, a blended diet may offer a number of benefits. …Read More
The patient is back in your office with another bout of recurrent pneumonia — the third time this year. At 7 years old, he can’t wait to join his school’s soccer team, but his parents report that he gets winded easily. Does he have asthma? Or could his symptoms indicate another problem with his airway?
Symptoms such as noisy breathing, a barking cough, and frequent respiratory infections can signal tracheomalacia (also known as tracheobronchomalacia), says Russell Jennings, MD, surgical director for the Esophageal and Airway Treatment Center at Boston Children’s Hospital. In this condition, the airway narrows or collapses when a child breathes, leading to symptoms such as noisy breathing, a barking cough, recurrent pneumonia and cyanosis. …Read More
This week is Antibiotic Awareness Week, a week focused on using antibiotics appropriately to provide the best clinical outcomes and avoid antibiotic resistance.
As physicians who care for patients with antibiotic resistant infections and those with antibiotic allergies, we know that there are real clinical advantages to being able to use “narrow” beta-lactam antibiotics such as amoxicillin. In fact, for many diagnoses, patients have better outcomes when they are treated with beta-lactam antibiotics that are targeted to their specific bacteria. …Read More