The Pediatric Academic Societies' Annual Meeting
The annual meeting of the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) was held from May 4 to 7 in Washington, D.C., and attracted more than 7,500 participants from around the world, including pediatricians and other allied health professionals. The conference highlighted recent advances in pediatric health care, with more than 3,000 scientific papers presented on a variety of topics, including bullying, firearms, and infant nutrition.
In one study, Andrew Adesman, M.D., of the Cohen Children's Medical Center in New Hyde Park, N.Y., and colleagues found that many pediatric specialists who evaluate young children for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder are not following American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) guidelines in that they are either prescribing medication as a first-line treatment, not prescribing medication when behavior therapy has failed, or prescribing a non-recommended medication.
"Although almost all of the responding pediatric specialists are recommending behavior therapy as a first-line treatment, some are recommending medication as a first-line treatment and others are not considering it as a second-line treatment. Although these pediatric specialists may be caring for more severely involved children, it is likely that they would benefit from reviewing existing clinical guidelines and trying to better conform to these guidelines in their clinical practice," said Adesman. "Since the APP guidelines are intended for primary care pediatricians, not specialists, we hope to do a follow-up study looking at whether primary care pediatricians are better at complying with AAP guidelines."
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In another study, Kevin Chatham-Stephens, M.D., of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City, and colleagues found that more than 8.6 million individuals in three countries (India, Philippines and Indonesia) are potentially at risk for exposure to one of eight chemical pollutants.
"Approximately two-thirds of these individuals are children or women of child-bearing age, which is important given that the prenatal and early childhood periods are thought to be the stages in which the developing body is the most vulnerable to toxic insults. Also of note, lead was the chemical that resulted in the most disability," said Chatham-Stephens. "Based on our calculations, exposures from toxic waste sites may potentially result in as much disease, disability, and death as better known threats to public health such as malaria."
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Julia B. Morinis, M.D., of the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, and colleagues found that preschool children who live in neighborhoods within walking distance of parks and stores are less likely to be obese.
The investigators found that 21 percent of the children were overweight and 5 percent were obese, which was in line with the general Toronto population. However, higher rates of being overweight or obese were associated with children who lived in neighborhoods that were not in walking distance of parks and retail services.
"How conducive a child's neighborhood is to physical activity is related to a child's body mass index even after adjusting for factors we know are associated with obesity, including socioeconomic status, immigration, ethnicity, parental body mass index, physical activity, age, gender, and birth weight," Morinis said in a statement. "A child's neighborhood is a potentially modifiable risk factor for obesity that we can target in order to stop the increasing prevalence of obesity in young children."
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PAS: Magnesium, Not Calcium, Linked to Bone Mineral Status
TUESDAY, May 7 (HealthDay News) -- Magnesium, but not calcium, intake seems to be associated with total bone mineral content and density among young children, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the Pediatric Academic Societies, held from May 4 to 7 in Washington, D.C.
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PAS: Racial Variation in Age-Appropriate Restraint Use
TUESDAY, May 7 (HealthDay News) -- Many young children are not in age-appropriate passenger restraints, with significant racial variation noted; and the vast majority of drivers with child passengers report distracted driving, according to two studies presented at the annual meeting of the Pediatric Academic Societies, held from May 4 to 7 in Washington, D.C.
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PAS: Most High School Athletes Won't Report Concussion
TUESDAY, May 7 (HealthDay News) -- Although most high school athletes are knowledgeable about concussion, most seem unwilling to report symptoms immediately or to abstain from play, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the Pediatric Academic Societies, held from May 4 to 7 in Washington, D.C.
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PAS: Neurodevelopment Marred With Prenatal PBDE Exposure
TUESDAY, May 7 (HealthDay News) -- Prenatal exposure to polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) is associated with cognitive deficits and hyperactivity in young children, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the Pediatric Academic Societies, held from May 4 to 7 in Washington, D.C.
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PAS: Cyberbullying Common Among High School Students
MONDAY, May 6 (HealthDay News) -- About one in six high school students reported being a victim of cyberbullying in the past year, especially females, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the Pediatric Academic Societies, held from May 4 to 7 in Washington, D.C.
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PAS: Childhood Disability Rates Up 16 Percent in Past Decade
MONDAY, May 6 (HealthDay News) -- Disability among children has increased in the last decade, particularly among children well above the poverty level; and, although disability rates due to physical conditions decreased, disability rates due to neurodevelopmental or mental conditions has increased, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the Pediatric Academic Societies, held from May 4 to 7 in Washington, D.C.
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PAS: Target Oxygen Saturation Levels for Preemies Explored
MONDAY, May 6 (HealthDay News) -- For extremely preterm infants, the optimal target oxygen saturation levels are unclear, according to two studies published online May 5, one in the Journal of the American Medical Association and one in the New England Journal of Medicine, to coincide with presentation at the annual meeting of the Pediatric Academic Societies, held from May 4 to 7 in Washington, D.C.
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PAS: Nearly Half of Teens Report Texting While Driving
MONDAY, May 6 (HealthDay News) -- More than 40 percent of teenagers report texting while driving (TWD), with other health-risk behaviors significantly predicting TWD, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the Pediatric Academic Societies, held from May 4 to 7 in Washington, D.C.
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PAS: Prenatal Vitamin C Cuts Wheeze in Infants of Smokers
MONDAY, May 6 (HealthDay News) -- For women who smoke, vitamin C supplementation during pregnancy is associated with reduced incidence of wheezing in their offspring through the age of 1 year, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the Pediatric Academic Societies, held from May 4 to 7 in Washington, D.C.
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PAS: Children With Strep Don't Need to Toss Toothbrushes
MONDAY, May 6 (HealthDay News) -- Children diagnosed with group A Streptococcus (GAS) have no need to throw away their toothbrushes, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the Pediatric Academic Societies, held from May 4 to 7 in Washington, D.C.
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