Blog | Page 41 of 158 | Boston Children's Answers

‘The teamwork is outstanding’: A look inside the Colorectal and Pelvic Malformation Center

Posted on March 27, 2023 by Jessica Cerretani | Clinical Care

Tags: colorectal and pelvic malformations, nephrology, surgery, urology

In honor of Women’s History Month, we sat down with some of the clinicians in Boston Children’s Colorectal and Pelvic Malformation Center (CPMC), one of the only centers of its kind led and staffed primarily by women. Here’s what they had to say about their work, their patients — and their hopes for the future. ... Read More

Tagged: colorectal and pelvic malformations, nephrology, surgery, urology

Why do so many dementia treatments fail? Questioning mouse models of tau accumulation

Posted on March 22, 2023 by Nancy Fliesler | Basic/Translational, Research

Tags: alzheimers disease, drug development, neuroscience

To date, the search for effective treatments for dementia has yielded only disappointments. Many recent drug candidates target the tau protein, which aggregates and forms tangles in patients’ brain tissue and is involved in 75 percent of all dementias. While tau-targeting drugs have looked promising in mouse models, they’ve failed in clinical trials. A recent ... Read More

Tagged: alzheimers disease, drug development, neuroscience

Female leadership in neonatology: The value of mentorship

Posted on March 21, 2023 by Nancy Fliesler | Our Community, People

Tags: newborn medicine, research

While the majority of neonatologists are women, women make up a far smaller proportion of neonatologists in leadership positions. A recent national survey led by Kristen Leeman, MD, in the Division of Newborn Medicine at Boston Children’s and Lindsay Johnston, MD, at Yale, finds that many female neonatologists face roadblocks to career development. They often ... Read More

Tagged: newborn medicine, research

Study seeks to identify household triggers for chronic lung disease in children

Posted on March 20, 2023 by Albert McKeon | Clinical, Research

Tags: asthma, bronchopulmonary dysplasia, environmental health, pulmonology, research

Home is where the heart is, but it’s also where air pollutants, allergens, and other irritants can make breathing difficult for children with the chronic lung disease bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD). BPD is the most common respiratory disease affecting children who were born prematurely. It leads to impaired lung function and respiratory symptoms similar to those associated ... Read More

Tagged: asthma, bronchopulmonary dysplasia, environmental health, pulmonology, research

Decades in the making: JR’s journey with craniofacial care

Posted on March 14, 2023 by Katie Paradis | Patient Stories

Tags: craniofacial, dentistry, neurosurgery, plastic surgery, psychiatry

Last fall, JR Foley posted on Facebook to thank members of the Craniofacial Program at Boston Children’s Hospital for seeing him through corrective jaw surgery. The post wasn’t JR’s first note of thanks, and it wasn’t his first surgery, either. JR’s been receiving care at Boston Children’s Hospital for more than 30 years. Treating the ... Read More

Tagged: craniofacial, dentistry, neurosurgery, plastic surgery, psychiatry

How I hear you: Isabelle’s cochlear implant story

Posted on March 10, 2023 by Joanne Barker | Patient Stories

Tags: cochlear implants, hearing, otolaryngology

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

Tagged: cochlear implants, hearing, otolaryngology

Treating brain ‘hotspots’ and networks to address autism, aggression, and more

Posted on March 8, 2023 by Nancy Fliesler | Clinical, Research

Tags: autism, autism research, autism spectrum disorder, developmental medicine, diagnostics, neurology, neuroscience, traumatic brain injury, tuberous sclerosis

What if doctors could break down conditions like autism into their key symptoms, map these symptoms to “hotspots” in the brain, and then treat those areas directly with brain stimulation? If it bears out, such an approach could turn the care of neurologic and developmental disorders on its head, focusing on symptoms that are shared ... Read More

Tagged: autism, autism research, autism spectrum disorder, developmental medicine, diagnostics, neurology, neuroscience, traumatic brain injury, tuberous sclerosis

After complex heart surgery, Yah’ir is all smiles

Posted on March 7, 2023 by Albert McKeon | Patient Stories

Tags: av canal, congenital heart defect, fetal cardiology, Fetal Care and Surgery Center, fetal medicine, heart, heart center, heart patient, pregnancy

Christina Moreland and Jimmy Austin want their 6-month-old son, Yah’ir, to have a bright future, one where he can pursue all of his dreams. “He can do whatever he wants to do,” Christina says. There’s just one caveat, an understandable one considering that Yah’ir is recovering from complex heart surgery. “As long as he doesn’t ... Read More

Tagged: av canal, congenital heart defect, fetal cardiology, Fetal Care and Surgery Center, fetal medicine, heart, heart center, heart patient, pregnancy

Hip pain is different in female dancers: New insights from dynamic ultrasound

Posted on March 3, 2023 by Joanne Barker | Clinical, Research

Tags: hip dysplasia, hip impingement, hip preservation, orthopedics, performing artist athletes, sports injury, sports medicine

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

Tagged: hip dysplasia, hip impingement, hip preservation, orthopedics, performing artist athletes, sports injury, sports medicine

Congenital hypothyroidism: New guidance for clinicians

Posted on March 2, 2023 by Jessica Cerretani | Clinical Care

Tags: endocrinology, research

Congenital hypothyroidism is usually caused by a baby being born with an absent or underactive thyroid gland. When not treated, it’s one of the most common preventable causes of intellectual disability. Although newborn screening can identify congenital hypothyroidism and lead to prompt treatment, an estimated 70 percent of newborns worldwide are born in regions that ... Read More

Tagged: endocrinology, research