Blog | Page 8 of 158 | Boston Children's Answers

Genetic causes of congenital diarrhea and enteropathy come into focus

Posted on April 15, 2025 by Nancy Fliesler | Clinical, Research

Tags: gastroenterology, genetics and genomics, intestinal rehabilitation

Congenital diarrheas and enteropathies are rare and devastating for infants and children. Treatments have consisted mainly of fluid and nutritional management. But in recent years, targeted dietary and drug therapies have emerged based on genetic discoveries. Now, research led by Boston Children’s Hospital, The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, and UCLA takes a major ... Read More

Tagged: gastroenterology, genetics and genomics, intestinal rehabilitation

Genomic sequencing transforms a life: Asa’s story

Posted on April 15, 2025 by Nancy Fliesler | Patient Stories, Research

Tags: gastroenterology, genetics and genomics, rare disease, research

Asa Cibelli feels like he’s been reborn. The straight-A middle schooler plays basketball and football, does jiu jitsu, is learning guitar, and can solve a Rubik’s cube in 40 seconds flat. But he once wondered if he’d ever feel better. From birth, Asa experienced chronic abdominal pain and severe diarrhea. The many doctors he saw ... Read More

Tagged: gastroenterology, genetics and genomics, rare disease, research

What orthopedic trauma surgeons wish more parents knew about lawnmower injuries

Posted on April 11, 2025 by Joanne Barker | Health and Parenting

Tags: infectious diseases, injury prevention, neurosurgery, orthopedics

Summer is full of delights: lemonade, ice cream, and fresh-cut grass to name a few. Unfortunately, the warmer months can also come with a type of injury that takes many families by surprise. Mowing the lawn may seem perfectly normal and safe. However, the blades that cut the grass can also do serious damage to ... Read More

Tagged: infectious diseases, injury prevention, neurosurgery, orthopedics

Could the falcine sinus hold the key to vein of Galen outcomes?

Posted on April 8, 2025 by Katie Paradis | Clinical, Research

Tags: cerebrovascular surgery and interventions center, developmental milestones, nicu, pulmonary hypertension, research, vein of galen malformation

A Boston Children’s Hospital study uncovers how fetal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) could be a game-changer in predicting outcomes for infants born with vein of Galen malformations (VOGMs). The study, just published in Stroke, focused on the width of the falcine sinus (FS) — the fetal structure that channels blood from the malformation back to ... Read More

Tagged: cerebrovascular surgery and interventions center, developmental milestones, nicu, pulmonary hypertension, research, vein of galen malformation

The thalamus: A potential therapeutic target for neurodevelopmental disorders

Posted on April 8, 2025 by Nancy Fliesler | Basic/Translational, Research

Tags: autism, developmental medicine, neurology, neuroscience

Years ago, as a neurology resident, Chinfei Chen, MD, PhD, cared for a 20-year-old woman who had experienced a very small stroke, affecting only the thalamus. “It was so tiny that she wouldn’t have noticed any symptoms had the stroke been in any other area of the brain,” says Chen, who is now an investigator ... Read More

Tagged: autism, developmental medicine, neurology, neuroscience

‘A football game changed my life’: Jamison’s non-directed kidney donation

Posted on April 7, 2025 by Veronica Giarla | Patient Stories

Tags: transplant, urethral valves

When recess is your favorite school subject, and you’re so naturally funny that the adults in your life belly laugh after everything you say, you get the title of a “cool kid” — well, at least if you’re Jamison. At 10, Jamison has an easy-going attitude that you wouldn’t expect once you hear he experienced ... Read More

Tagged: transplant, urethral valves

Using her voice: After tracheomalacia treatment, Claire keeps her eye on the ball

Posted on April 2, 2025 by Jessica Cerretani | Patient Stories

Tags: Esophageal and Airway Treatment Center, surgery, tracheomalacia

Claire Kantany is only 10, but she knows what she wants to do when she grows up — in fact, she’s already doing it. Combining an interest in acting with her family’s love of football, she has her mind set on a career in sportscasting. Not only is she reporting on local games from the sidelines, ... Read More

Tagged: Esophageal and Airway Treatment Center, surgery, tracheomalacia

Partnering diet and intestinal microbes to protect against GI disease

Posted on April 1, 2025 by Nancy Fliesler | Basic/Translational, Research

Tags: diet, gastroenterology, infectious diseases, inflammatory bowel disease, microbiome, nutrition

Despite being an everyday necessity, nutrition is something of a black box. We know that many plant-based foods are good for us, but we don’t always know why. Our intestinal microbiome, which helps break down these foods once we consume them, is another black box. What role do our gut bacteria play? Seth Rakoff-Nahoum, MD, ... Read More

Tagged: diet, gastroenterology, infectious diseases, inflammatory bowel disease, microbiome, nutrition

When to refer a pediatric patient for endometriosis

Posted on March 31, 2025 by Veronica Giarla | Clinical Care, Specialty Care

Tags: endometriosis, gynecology, pain

Endometriosis is a complex disease in which endometrium-like tissue grows in locations such as the fallopian tubes, ovaries, or pelvic tissue, leading to serious pelvic pain and other symptoms. Although there is a common assumption that the disease only affects adults, approximately two-thirds of people with endometriosis report that their symptoms were present before age ... Read More

Tagged: endometriosis, gynecology, pain

‘What I want you to know about endometriosis’: Iva’s story

Posted on March 28, 2025 by Iva Briggs | Patient Stories

Tags: endometriosis, gynecology, pain

Growing up, I heard stories about how everyone’s first period is usually no big deal. The cramps, the fatigue, the cravings—just uncomfortable to most. But my first period at age 11 brought excruciating pain that caused me to double over and wonder if I was the only one who experienced this. I had “the talk” ... Read More

Tagged: endometriosis, gynecology, pain