Pediatricians and the clinicians who care for children writing on KevinMD about child health: childhood illness, development, vaccines and the parents who refuse them, breastfeeding and the pressure around it, childhood obesity, prevention, and the realities of caring for young patients and their families. Most contributors are pediatricians. For a maintained record of what pediatricians have said about children's health since 2004, from fever and sleep through obesity, abuse, teenagers, and Medicaid, see Children's health: what pediatricians say, in their own words. For what physicians have said about vaccines and vaccine hesitancy, from the autism claim through measles, exemptions, and federal policy, see Vaccines: what physicians say, in their own words. For what child psychiatrists and pediatricians have said about children's and teens' mental health, see Mental health: what psychiatrists and physicians say, in their own words. For what pediatricians have said about breastfeeding and postpartum care, see Women's health: what physicians say, in their own words.
Coughing is one of the most common reasons parents bring their children to see me. And I can understand why. Coughing is noisy and uncomfortable and gets kids dirty looks in schools and subways. Even worse, coughing keeps kids and their parents awake. We’ve all been there, and no one likes to cough.
But coughing is there, usually, for a reason. Almost all coughs are from upper respiratory infections (that’s fancy …
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There’s absolutely no way to stop a cough. Here’s why.
During this recent emotional and divisive election cycle, much ink was devoted to analyzing the brave new political world we now live in, a world in which just about anyone with an audience and a platform can issue statements that are accepted as fact by millions of people, often in the face of solid evidence to the contrary.
I’m talking, of course, about the world of Read more…
Welcome to the world of post-truth medicine
A couple of years ago, I took care of a 12-month-old boy with a cough. He had been seen by three other doctors over the last two days. Initially, he was seen by his pediatrician, who told his mother that it was “just a virus” and that his symptoms would go away on their own. Unsatisfied with this answer, she left the pediatrician’s office and drove immediately to an urgent …
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Sometimes doing no harm means doing nothing
On June 30, 2015, California’s Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law Senate Bill 277 (SB277), which tightened requirements so that parents could no longer opt out of vaccinating their children if they were attending state licensed schools, daycares, and nurseries.
Dr. Richard Pan (D-Sacramento), a pediatrician, sponsored the legislation, which quickly became a nationwide litmus test on the debate over personal liberty versus public health in the aftermath of the large, …
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California’s vaccine mandate is working. More states should adopt it.
As a pediatrician who has been practicing for fifteen years, the most frequent non-medical question that patients’ parents ask me is, “Doctor, do you have children of your own?”
Their questions show that although they value my medical education and expertise, they want to know if I’ve had first-hand experience with the worries and difficulties of having a sick child, making decisions regarding vaccinations, and raising children in general. I answer …
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What pediatrician mothers want you to know
Robert Kennedy, Jr. is an activist, author, and attorney specializing in environmental law. He is the son of Robert “Bobby” Kennedy, a former U.S. attorney general, and the nephew of former President John F. Kennedy. Kennedy is president of the board of Waterkeeper Alliance, a non-profit focused on protecting and enhancing waterways worldwide. He has written a book about the damaging effects of vaccinations due to thimerosal, and to round …
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Let’s make vaccines great again
Megan, like all parents, hates the whining and nagging: “It’s driving me crazy. My children whine and complain until they get what they want. I try not to give in, but sometimes it’s just impossible. What can I do?”
(That’s an excerpt from a much longer message. You get the idea.)
Let’s look at whining from a classic behavioral approach. Stay with me, here — behavioral theory is a big part of …
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How to stop whining in children: What casinos can teach us
I love my children. This should come as no great surprise. Parents love their children. While many are feeling that our nation is divided, love for our children and their future can unite us.
In my professional career as a pediatrician, I have seen parents experience happiness, sadness, fear, and sometimes frustration but always behind these emotions is love for their children. As a mom, I can empathize with each of …
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Our love for our children is the tie that binds us
During sports physical appointments, I routinely address preventive health topics that range from asking about alcohol, drugs, and sexuality, to addressing accident prevention and updating immunizations. At one such appointment recently, a young male teen was due for two routine vaccines. The mother accompanying him had no concerns about one of the vaccines, but expressed concern about the other. A friend had recently shared information on Facebook about how the …
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It is critical for physicians to use their long-held trust wisely
Parents are sometimes surprised to find out that migraines are the most common cause of recurrent headaches in children. Yes, kids get migraines — and many adults who get them started getting them as children, even if they weren’t diagnosed correctly.
(And many adults who get migraines are still not being diagnosed correctly. Do you get “sinus” headaches? They’re almost certainly migraines. Yes, I know you feel congested with them. Yes, …
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What you need to know about migraine headaches in children
In my former life as a hospital-based, shift-working physician with young children at home, this time of the year inevitably brought the same question from at least a handful of individuals: “Isn’t it hard on your kids not to have you home on Christmas?” Thankfully, I was always able to answer truthfully, “no.” With consistent effort and a no-nonsense attitude, my kiddos either didn’t know the difference because they were …
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To the caregivers over the holidays: Thank you
When was the last time your child read a book featuring someone different from them?
When did they last read a book about an African American girl celebrating her birthday, a Mexican American girl celebrating her quinceañera, or a Jewish American boy celebrating his bar mitzvah?
What about a book featuring Chinese American, Native American, Indian American or Muslim children?
Think of the last few books you read to your children. Chances are, …
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Use diverse children’s books to bridge our empathy gap
As a medical student, I have encountered more emotional and psychological pain as a direct result of my training than I could have previously anticipated. My pain may not be physical (though sometimes it is secondary to sleep deprivation), but it is real. I look around me and am reminded of who I do not want to be, and the kind of person I would dread becoming. At first, I …
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Hurting medical students healing hurting patients
Someday, we may miss the quaint idea of going to see your doctor for your medical concerns.
I realize taking your children to see their doc is a pain. So is taking your car into the mechanic, waiting for the cable guy or going out for groceries. There are other things you’d rather be doing with your time. Can a quick phone call substitute for a doctor visit?
At least one huge …
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Telemedicine: What could go wrong? A lot.
I don’t want to dramatize the death of a nineteen-month-old girl who passed away this summer from wounds secondary to child abuse. I just want to document that it happened. That in late August, as I was signing out my patients to the resident taking over for me in the ED, an infant was wheeled in who was found by EMS in asystole with a body temperature below 90 degrees Fahrenheit. …
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Acts of violence against children have 2 victims
Naturopaths hate it when I draw attention to examples of patient harm resulting from naturopaths failing to uphold medical standards of care. The Ezekiel Stephan case was a prime example of the harm that can come from naturopaths trying to play doctor.
Nineteen-month-old Ezekiel Stephan died in 2012 from bacterial meningitis after his parents sought medical advice from naturopath Tracey Tannis. Per Tannis’s recommendation, Ezekiel’s parents treated him …
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Naturopaths have no place providing health care to children
“C-section at OR 3,” said the clerk at the neonatal ICU (NICU). We then sped to the prep area to enter the OR as soon as we could.
Once geared up, we entered the OR and waited for the new addition to the NICU family. Mom had no prenatal care, but we knew she had used multiple illicit drugs throughout the pregnancy, she was young, had a history of psychiatric disease, …
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A NICU case that will stay with this medical student forever
Codeine is a terrible choice for treating children’s pain and cough, and we ought to just stop using it. It’s like an old yogurt container, way at the back of your fridge — sure, it was once tasty, and then for a while, you held on to it for sentimental reasons. “Remember that yogurt?” you’d say to your spouse. But it’s well past time to throw that stinky stuff away.
For …
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Codeine is a terrible choice for treating children’s pain and cough. Here’s why.
“Listen, when I was your age, I did the same thing …”
The words came out of my mouth too fast for my frontal cortex to weigh them or to monitor, let alone modulate, the intensity of my delivery.
He was a relatively new patient, 17 years old, scheduled for a well-child exam. A tall, athletic young man, he was alone in the exam room. His right arm was in a sling.
“What …
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The medical regrets in my life
