Pediatrics
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Comparative Study
Cognition, communication, and hearing in young children with cleft lip and palate and in control children: a longitudinal study.
To compare a group of children with cleft lip and palate (CLP) with a group of noncleft, matched control children on measures of cognitive development, speech and language abilities, and audiologic status at 12 and 24 months of age. ⋯ Children with CLP had significantly lower scores on tests of cognition, comprehension, and expressive language abilities than matched control children at 12 and 24 months of age. They also had a higher frequency of middle-ear disease and ventilation tubes than control children, although no significant difference in hearing sensitivity was found between groups. Early identification and treatment of these delays may reduce subsequent verbal deficits, hearing loss, and academic difficulties.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
The efficacy of nebulized budesonide in dexamethasone-treated outpatients with croup.
To determine the added clinical benefit of nebulized budesonide in children with mild to moderate croup treated with 0.6 mg/kg oral dexamethasone. ⋯ Despite receiving simultaneous oral dexamethasone, pediatric outpatients with mild to moderate croup have added, clinically important improvement in respiratory symptoms after treatment with budesonide.
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Markers currently used to identify infants at highest risk for perinatal hypoxic-ischemic cerebral injury are insensitive in predicting the subsequent occurrence of neonatal seizures and/or neurodevelopmental sequelae, ie, cerebral palsy. To facilitate therapeutic strategies, early identification of the infant at highest risk for developing seizures secondary to hypoxia ischemia or asphyxia is critical, particularly if novel but potentially toxic therapies currently under experimental investigation become available for clinical use. ⋯ A combination of high-risk postnatal markers, specifically, a low 5-minute Apgar score and intubation in the DR in association with severe fetal acidemia, facilitates the identification within the first hour of life of term infants at highest risk for developing seizures secondary to perinatal asphyxia.
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This study measures the incidence of discrepancies among written prescriptions, medication regimens transcribed onto patient discharge instruction sheets (DCIs), and labels on medications dispensed by community pharmacies after discharge of patients from an academic medical center. ⋯ A potential for medication errors exists when pediatric patients are discharged with unfilled prescriptions. The potential may be worsened when discharge instructions are created from a prescription rather than from the label of a dispensed medication. Educational and risk-management efforts should emphasize the importance of writing complete, legible prescriptions and consulting appropriate reference materials to ensure that dose formulations and guidelines are accurate. Whenever possible, prescriptions should be filled before patients are discharged, so that the dispensed medications can be reviewed, and health care providers can provide accurate discharge instructions.
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We sought to validate a nutritional screen that was easy to perform and accurate in identifying pediatric patients at risk for adverse clinical outcomes based on their nutritional status. ⋯ Our nutritional screen identifies patients in the pediatric intensive care complex with respiratory syncytial virus at increased risk for adverse outcome. This screen may be useful in identifying pediatric patients at risk for adverse clinical outcomes from other medical diagnoses.