Archive for Joanne Barker
How I hear you: Isabelle’s cochlear implant story
Isabelle is a thriving AP student, hockey player, and online gamer who listens to music and communicates with the help of cochlear implants. When people ask about the devices behind her ears, she responds, “They’re my ears. That’s how I hear you.” Fourteen years ago, when Vicki and Jason learned one of their newborn twins ... Read More
Hip pain is different in female dancers: New insights from dynamic ultrasound
Dancers put unique demands on their hips, achieving extreme ranges of motion that can strain the joints and damage supporting tissues around them. Not surprisingly, hip injuries account for up to 17 percent of injuries in dancers and 27 percent among professional dancers. Microinstability — no small problem for dancers Conditions such as hip dysplasia ... Read More
Social and emotional health in high school: “Things are less heavy this year”
Parents and teachers alike have worried about the effects of remote learning on kids. Social worker Sarauna Moore is no exception. In her role working with students at Boston Arts Academy (BAA), she noticed a change in students’ emotions and relationships when in-person learning resumed in 2021. Social skills that students would typically have developed ... Read More
A different kind of hearing: Caleb’s cochlear implant
Caleb recently told his mother, “I think I’m going to write my own stories.” This news didn’t surprise his parents, Wendy and Chris. For several years, 8-year-old Caleb has filled notebook after notebook with pictures and stories. His stack of favorite books includes Boxcar Children and The Chronicles of Narnia. But given some of his ... Read More
Jenna’s comeback from PAO surgery
By the time Jenna was 14, her off-and-on hip pain had become an always-on issue. The accomplished soccer player and runner from Southern California had experienced intermittent pain since she was 12. She tried physical therapy to ease the hip pain, but it only got worse as she competed at higher levels. Over time, her ... Read More
Healthy behaviors may counteract the long-term effects of concussions
When it comes to football, concussion, and long-term health, many people have already made up their minds: They believe that repeat concussions condemn athletes to a future of mental illness and cognitive decline. Such beliefs instill fear and helplessness in many professional athletes and their families. “There’s a thought that former NFL players are all ... Read More
Teens aren’t small adults: Rethinking surgical treatment of adolescent clavicle fracture
Until about 15 years ago, most clavicle fractures were allowed to heal with minimal medical intervention. That changed after a 2007 study reported better shoulder function after plate-fixation surgery. Although the study participants were adults, the rate of surgical treatment subsequently increased across all age groups. Now, a landmark study at Boston Children’s Hospital demonstrates ... Read More
Nerve block and a way out of pain after surgery
If she hadn’t dislocated her knee severely when she was 13, Paige Thornton probably wouldn’t have such strong feelings about pain. But most teenagers haven’t gone through an experience like hers: two surgeries at a hospital outside of Boston followed by weeks of agonizing pain and a year and half struggling to walk. Blocks use ... Read More
AI could change the way we look at hip preservation
Orthopedic surgeons and biomedical engineers are trained to approach adolescent and young adult hip pain from two different perspectives. Surgeons typically look at conditions such as femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) and hip dysplasia from a clinical point of view. Engineers more often focus on the technology angle. These two perspectives have come together at Boston Children’s ... Read More
Care in the classroom: Children’s behavioral health in schools
If you want to address children’s social, emotional, and behavioral health, go to where the kids are — in schools. This straightforward idea is at the heart of the Boston Children’s Hospital Neighborhood Partnerships (BCHNP). The program and its team of 17 psychologists and social workers bring behavioral health services and training directly to schools, ... Read More