Children’s Health

While COVID-19 disease significantly impacts many pregnant women, the rates of transmission from mother to baby in pregnancy are very low. A new study from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) has demonstrated that ACE-2, the receptor that allows SARS-CoV-2 to enter cells, is found in lower levels in the placentas of women with COVID-19

In a first-ever study, researchers at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and College of Medicine examined the unintentional drug overdose mortality in Years of Life Lost among adolescents and young people in the United States.   Study findings are published online in the journal JAMA Pediatrics. Excess mortality was calculated in Years of

Pain-predominant disorders of gut-brain interaction (DGBIs) in children -; such as functional abdominal pain (FAP) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)-; can lead to disabling symptoms, poor quality of life and high use of health care resources. Studies suggest that an open-label placebo (OLP) approach -; in which patients are aware that they are receiving a

Fusion oncogenes, such as RET- and NTRK-gene fusions, are associated with more invasive pediatric thyroid cancers, correlating with the highest risk of metastases and a lower likelihood of achieving remission one year after initial therapy, according to a new study by researchers at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). The findings, which were published in the

A novel gene therapy promoted transfusion independence in more than 90 percent of adult and pediatric patients with transfusion-dependent beta-thalassemia, according to a recent clinical trial published in The New England Journal of Medicine. The therapy represents a potentially curative treatment option for patients who must otherwise rely on life-long red blood cell transfusions. This

The University of South Florida recently received a highly competitive National Institutes of Health (NIH) Institutional Training Grant (Award Number T32HL160529), boosting the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine’s (MCOM) capacity to prepare the next generation of scientists in an emerging area of research applicable to many major diseases. The NIH’s National, Heart, Lung, and

Northwestern Medicine investigators continue to study the COVID-19 pandemic, from the biological mechanisms of disease and infection patterns to the pandemic’s impact on women and sexual and gender minorities. Outcomes of COVID-positive youths at emergency departments Among 3,221 youths who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, in emergency departments (EDs), 3.3 percent

Teens who have frequent suicidal thoughts are at risk for a variety of psychological and social problems, according to a new study by researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH). These findings, reported in the Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, can help pediatric primary care physicians identify and care for youths at risk for depression,

In a research paper posted to the Research Square preprint* server and under consideration for publication in the European Journal of Pediatrics journal, researchers assess the different clinical symptoms of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in children and adolescents across different time periods. Study: Dynamics in COVID-19 Symptoms During Different Waves of

Two months after Pfizer’s covid vaccine was authorized for children ages 5 to 11, just 27% have received at least one shot, according to Jan. 12 data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Only 18%, or 5 million kids, have both doses. The national effort to vaccinate children has stalled even as the

Northwestern Medicine scientists developed a unique nanoparticle to deliver genome editing technology, including CRISPR/Cas9, to endothelial cells, which line blood vessel walls. Published in Cell Reports, this is the first time that vascular endothelial cells could be reached for genome editing, since the usual way to deliver CRISPR/Cas9 – through a virus – does not

The impact virtual school had on kids goes well beyond academics, say Children’s National Hospital experts in a new JAMA Pediatrics editorial. From the beginning of the pandemic, new data shows that school closures for in-person learning led to: School disengagement Mental health challenges Unhealthy weight gain Food insecurity Immunization delay An increase in cases

A growing body of evidence indicates that some people thought to have an allergic response to injectable penicillin, the standard treatment for rheumatic heart disease, may instead be experiencing a cardiac reaction to the medicine, according to a new American Heart Association presidential advisory published today in Journal of the American Heart Association. The advisory,

An investigational cancer drug that starves tumors of their energy supply also shows evidence of improving whole body metabolism, according to a new study in mice from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Shown are sections of liver from mice on a high-fat, high-sugar diet. On the left, more white space indicates greater

Seeking to better understand the key role the female hormone estrogen plays in maintaining energy balance and weight control, a group led by researchers at Baylor College of Medicine looked into estrogen interactions with specific brain regions that provide these anti-obesity benefits. The team reveals in the journal Science Advances an estrogen-activated neurocircuit that stimulates

A collaborative study by the Department of Social Work and Social Administration, the University of Hong Kong and the Department of Paediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, United Christian Hospital Background Eczema, asthma, and rhinitis are three of the most common paediatric allergic diseases. Beyond persistent hallmark symptoms such as scratching, wheezing, and sneezing, allergic diseases impose

For transgender people, starting gender-affirming hormone treatment in adolescence is linked to better mental health than waiting until adulthood, according to new research led by the Stanford University School of Medicine. The study, which appeared online Jan. 12 in PLOS ONE, drew on data from the largest-ever survey of U.S. transgender adults, a group of

A combination of anti-cancer antibodies produced a powerfully synergistic response in two hard-to-treat pediatric cancers, according to a new study, in mice, led by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine. The results, which published online Jan. 13 in Nature Medicine, provide hope for better treatments of neuroblastoma, a cancer affecting young children that

The performance of lateral flow (antigen) tests commonly used to detect COVID-19 infection in children falls short of the minimum criteria set by the World Health Organization (WHO) and US and UK device regulators, finds a pooled data analysis of the available evidence on 8 different tests, published in the journal BMJ Evidence-Based Medicine. The

Heart function recovery returned within three months in children who developed COVID-19-related multisystem inflammatory syndrome (MIS-C), according to new research published today in the Journal of the American Heart Association, an open access, peer-reviewed journal of the American Heart Association. MIS-C is a new illness identified during the COVID-19 pandemic that affects children about four