Expanding on a lifetime of heart care: The BACH Program
As more patients born with congenital heart disease (CHD) live well into adulthood and older age, there is an increasing demand for clinicians who understand their complex and unique needs. Since its inception more than 25 years ago, the Boston Adult Congenital Heart (BACH) Program has been a leader in adult congenital heart disease (ACHD) ... Read More about Expanding on a lifetime of heart care: The BACH Program
Neurosurgeon’s pioneering technique helps thousands of children
Michael Scott, MD, was a 29-year-old neurosurgery resident at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston when he saw a patient with a condition he hadn’t learned about in medical school: a narrowing of the blood vessels entering the brain. It was 1970, and though Japanese doctors had described the condition a few years earlier, it would ... Read More about Neurosurgeon’s pioneering technique helps thousands of children
Concerning rates of opioid prescribing to teens and youth
Teens and young adults are notably susceptible to misusing opioids and becoming addicted once exposed. Opioids should be used with great care in this group. Yet a large national study from Boston Children’s Hospital finds that opioid prescriptions to youth aged 13-22 are much like those in older adults. Based on 2005-2015 data from the ... Read More about Concerning rates of opioid prescribing to teens and youth
Study shows benefits of blended diets
Medically complex children often receive nutrition through gastrostomy tubes (G-tubes) or gastrojejunostomy tubes (G-J-tubes), frequently in the form of conventional formula. Although such formulas can be high in calories, they also tend to be rich in processed carbohydrates and saturated fat and lacking in fiber — characteristics that have been linked to the development of ... Read More about Study shows benefits of blended diets
The business case for addressing disparities in asthma
The Community Asthma Initiative (CAI) at Boston Children’s Hospital has been improving the health and quality of life of children with asthma for more than a decade — and now there’s exciting new evidence about the financial benefits of doing so. CAI works to address the disproportionately high rate of asthma in children from mostly ... Read More about The business case for addressing disparities in asthma
Predicting and preventing asthma exacerbations in children
Some pediatric primary care providers in Massachusetts have a powerful new way to identify and prevent uncontrolled asthma in children. The Medical Home Asthma Program (MAP), modeled after the Community Asthma Initiative (CAI), is offered to practices in the Pediatric Physician’s Organization at Children’s (PPOC). MAP helps providers leverage electronic tools to identify at-risk children ... Read More about Predicting and preventing asthma exacerbations in children
Charting a new course in primary care for patients with asthma
Primary care providers at Boston Children’s Primary Care at Longwood have found that their innovative, personalized approach to treating asthma has improved outcomes for children. Providers recognized that families coping with a child’s asthma needed more guidance than they could get at an annual check-up or sick visit, says Faye Holder-Niles, MD, MPH, a pediatrician ... Read More about Charting a new course in primary care for patients with asthma
A lifeline for families with asthma
Nilda Gabin knows how terrifying it is to rush to the hospital with a child who is having trouble breathing — fortunately, that hasn’t happened to her in two years. “The scariest part is to see your child struggling to breathe and you can’t do anything to help them at home,” says Nilda, who recalls ... Read More about A lifeline for families with asthma
Better evaluation needed for BRUEs
Previously known as apparent life-threatening events, brief resolved unexplained events (BRUEs) are episodes marked by choking, paleness, blue spells (cyanosis), and limpness. They tend to occur in previously healthy infants and send worried parents racing to the emergency department (ED). Although gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is frequently implicated in these patients, pediatric gastroenterologists are often ... Read More about Better evaluation needed for BRUEs
Stool transplant found safe, effective for ‘C. diff’ in children
Diarrhea caused by Clostridiodes (formerly Clostridium) difficile infections is on the rise among children; one population-based study found a 12.5-fold increase in incidence from 1991 to 2009. For reasons that aren’t clear, C. difficile is more frequently striking children without the usual risk factors, such as hospitalization or antibiotic exposure. One thing that is known ... Read More about Stool transplant found safe, effective for ‘C. diff’ in children