Pediatrics
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Dr Van Cleave's current address is Department of Pediatrics, Center for Child and Adolescent Health Policy, MassGeneral Hospital for Children, 50 Staniford St, Room 901, Boston, MA 02114. The association between bullying, being bullied, or being a bully/victim and having a special health care need has not been well described in a national sample of children with a broad variety of special needs. ⋯ Having a special health care need generally is associated with being bullied, and having a behavioral, emotional, or developmental problem is associated with bullying others and being a bully/victim. These findings may help pediatricians, mental health providers, and schools use targeted screening and interventions to address bullying for children with special health care needs.
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Emergency departments are vital in the management of pediatric patients with mental health emergencies. Pediatric mental health emergencies are an increasing part of emergency medical practice because emergency departments have become the safety net for a fragmented mental health infrastructure that is experiencing critical shortages in services in all sectors. ⋯ Emergency departments must address not only the physical but also the mental health needs of patients during and after mass-casualty incidents and disasters. The American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Emergency Physicians support advocacy for increased mental health resources, including improved pediatric mental health tools for the emergency department, increased mental health insurance coverage, and adequate reimbursement at all levels; acknowledgment of the importance of the child's medical home; and promotion of education and research for mental health emergencies.
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A Delphi approach to reach consensus on primary care guidelines regarding youth violence prevention.
Anticipatory guidance is a cornerstone of modern pediatric practice. In recognition of its importance for child well being, injury prevention counseling is a standard element of that guidance. Over the last 20 years, there has been growing recognition that intentional injury or violence is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality among youth. The US Surgeon General identified youth violence as a major public health issue and a top priority. Yet, only recently has the scope of injury prevention counseling been expanded to include violence. Pediatric health care providers agree that youth violence-prevention counseling should be provided, yet the number of topics available, the already lengthy list of other anticipatory guidance topics to be covered, developmental considerations, and the evidence base make the selection of an agreed-on set a considerable challenge. The purpose of this study was to systematically identify and prioritize specific counseling topics in violence prevention that could be integrated into anticipatory guidance best practice. ⋯ The Delphi technique proved a useful approach for accessing expert opinion, for analyzing and synthesizing results, for achieving consensus, and for setting priorities among the numerous anticipatory guidance and assessment topics relevant for raising resilient, violence-free youth.
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The obesity epidemic in the United States continues to increase. Because obesity tends to track over time, the increase in overweight among young children is of significant concern. A number of eating patterns have been associated with overweight among preschool-aged children. Recently, 100% fruit juice and sweetened fruit drinks have received considerable attention as potential sources of high-energy beverages that could be related to the prevalence of obesity among young children. Our aim was to evaluate the beverage intake among preschool children who participated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999-2002 and investigate associations between types and amounts of beverages consumed and weight status in preschool-aged children. ⋯ On average, preschool children drank less milk than the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommendation of 16 oz/day. Only 8.6% drank low-fat or skim milk, as recommended for children who are older than 2 years. On average, preschool children drank < 6 oz/day 100% fruit juice. Increased beverage consumption was associated with an increase in the total energy intake of the children but not with their BMI. Prospectively studying preschool children beyond 2 to 5 years of age, through their adiposity rebound (approximately 5.5-6 years) to determine whether there is a trajectory increase in their BMI, may help to clarify the role of beverage consumption in total energy intake and weight status.
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Comparative Study
Comparison of outcome measures for a traditional pediatric faculty service and nonfaculty hospitalist services in a community teaching hospital.
Several studies have found decreased cost and length of stay for patients who are cared for by pediatric hospitalists compared with traditional faculty models. The objective of this study was to compare cost and length of stay between a faculty group and 2 separate hospitalist groups in a community teaching hospital. This study differs from previous ones in that both the traditional faculty and hospitalist models were in place simultaneously, and the traditional faculty group was employed by the hospital, whereas the hospitalist groups were in private practice. ⋯ Traditional faculty models can be as efficient in terms of total direct costs and length of stay as evolving hospitalist models. This study's results may be unique because the traditional faculty model was composed of general pediatricians instead of a blend of generalists and subspecialists. In addition, the traditional faculty physicians concentrated almost entirely on the care of inpatients while engaged in hospital care.