medicine and health

By Maureen Salamon
HealthDay Reporter

FRIDAY, Oct. 19 (HealthDay News) -- Austin Booth was a three-sport high school athlete who never missed a day of school for illness. So his parents could never have foreseen the nightmare that would unfold in January 2011 when the 17-year-old Colorado teen would die of the flu just five days after developing symptoms, four days of which were spent on life support.

"It was unreal to see this kid on life support who a few days before was playing in a basketball game," said Austin's mother, Regina Booth. "Even to look back on it, it's still just an unreal situation for us. To think that something as simple as a flu shot could have saved his life is hard to think about as a mom, but we had not ever gotten flu shots."

As flu season gets under way, health officials are urging people of all ages to get vaccinated against influenza regardless of whether they have any high-risk conditions, such as asthma or diabetes, that predispose them to worsened bouts of the illness. Indeed, Austin Booth's story is not unusual, with a new study indicating that healthy children who die of the flu have a shorter period between symptom onset and death than children with underlying conditions who succumb.

The research, presented Thursday at the Infectious Diseases Society of America's IDWeek in San Diego, found that healthy children died within about four days of flu onset, compared to seven days for kids with high-risk conditions. A complementary study presented at the conference that looked at school-based vaccinations determined that unvaccinated children were nearly three times as likely to get the flu than vaccinated kids.

Between 3,000 and 49,000 Americans die of the flu each year, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"This may surprise a lot of people who think of influenza in the same box as children having colds," said Dr. Karen Wong, author of the first study and an epidemic intelligence service officer for the CDC in Atlanta. "I think our study is important because it reminds people that influenza is a really serious disease. The vaccine is the best prevention tool we have."

During influenza seasons between 2004 and 2012, almost half the children who died had previously been healthy, according to the study, which reviewed flu-associated deaths among children younger than 18 as reported by city and state health departments and confirmed through lab testing. More than 800 children died of the flu in that span.

In addition to vaccinations, parents can promote other measures to help prevent their children and themselves from catching the flu, Wong said, including washing hands often, covering coughs and keeping any sick family members at home. Talk to the child's health care provider if he or she shows signs of the flu instead of simply loading up on symptom-relieving medications, she advised.

"Early warning signs can be really difficult to pick up on, especially in young children, which is why prevention is the best defense," Wong said. "If your child is irritable, isn't interacting as they normally would, and symptoms get a little better and then markedly worse, talk with a doctor."

Regina Booth, who is expecting the couple's sixth child in December, now makes sure she, her husband, Carl, and Austin's siblings are vaccinated before flu season each year. A flu vaccination drive was recently held in Austin's name at his high school football field.

"I try to explain to people, without pushing it on them, that I was one of those parents who didn't think it was needed," she said. "Now, if I can help someone, I definitely want to. We feel it's the only thing we can do that's positive out of what's happened."

Research presented at scientific conferences should be considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed medical journal.

Copyright © 2012 HealthDay. All rights reserved. SOURCES: Karen Wong, M.D., epidemic intelligence service officer, Influenza Division, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta; Regina Booth, Rifle, Colorado; Oct. 18, 2012, presentation, IDWeek (Infectious Diseases Society of America), San Diego

Sunday, October 21, 2012

Foster kids do equally well when adopted by gay, lesbian or heterosexual parents, study suggests

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ScienceDaily (Oct. 18, 2012) — High-risk children adopted from foster care do equally well when placed with gay, lesbian or heterosexual parents, UCLA psychologists report in the first multi-year study of children adopted by these three groups of parents.

The psychologists looked at 82 high-risk children adopted from foster care in Los Angeles County. Of those children, 60 were placed with heterosexual parents and 22 were placed with gay or lesbian parents (15 with gay male parents and seven with lesbian parents).

The age of the children ranged from 4 months to 8 years, with an average age of 4, while the adoptive parents ranged in age from 30 to 56, with an average age of 41. Sixty-eight percent of the parents were married or living with a partner.

The psychologists studied the children two months, one year and two years after they were placed with a family. The children underwent a cognitive assessment by a clinical psychologist three times during the course of the study, and the parents completed standard questionnaires about the children's behavior at each of the three assessment periods.

The psychologists found very few differences among the children at any of the assessments over the two-year period following placement. On average, children in heterosexual, gay and lesbian households achieved significant gains in their cognitive development, and their levels of behavior problems remained stable. Their IQ scores increased by an average of 10 points, from about 85 to 95 -- a large increase, from low-average to average functioning.

"The children showed meaningful gains in heterosexual, gay and lesbian families," said Justin Lavner, a UCLA doctoral candidate in psychology and lead author of the study. "Their cognitive development improved substantially, while their behavior problems and social development were stable."

The study is published in the October issue of the American Journal of Orthopsychiatry.

The children had multiple risk factors at the time of adoption, including premature birth, prenatal substance exposure, abuse or neglect, and multiple prior placements. The psychologists acquired information regarding these biological and environmental risk factors from birth records, court reports and Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services records.

The children adopted by gay and lesbian families had more risk factors at the time of their placement; out of nine risk factors, they averaged one additional risk factor, compared with the children adopted by heterosexual parents.

"The children adopted by gay and lesbian parents had more challenges before they were adopted and yet they end up in the same place, which is impressive," said Letitia Anne Peplau, a distinguished research professor of psychology at UCLA and co-author of the study.

At a time when tens of thousands of foster children lack stable homes and concerns about the suitability of gay and lesbian adoptive parents limit the pool of potential parents, the study indicates that gay and lesbian parents can provide nurturing homes for these children in a manner similar to that of heterosexual parents.

"There is no scientific basis to discriminate against gay and lesbian parents," Peplau said.

Asked whether children need a mother and father, senior author Jill Waterman, a UCLA adjunct professor of psychology, said, "Children need people who love them, regardless of the gender of their parents."

The study participants were recruited from UCLA TIES (Training, Intervention, Education, and Services) for Families as part of a broader study on the development of children adopted from foster care. UCLA TIES for Families promotes the successful adoption of high-risk children from foster care to nurturing homes.

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by University of California - Los Angeles. The original article was written by Stuart Wolpert.
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

Journal Reference:

Justin A. Lavner, Jill Waterman, Letitia Anne Peplau. Can Gay and Lesbian Parents Promote Healthy Development in High-Risk Children Adopted From Foster Care? American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 2012; 82 (4): 465 DOI: 10.1111/j.1939-0025.2012.01176.x

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Caring Parents Less Likely to Raise a Bully, Study Finds

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THURSDAY, Oct. 18 (HealthDay News) -- Children whose parents know their friends, support them academically and talk to them are less likely than others to become bullies, according to a new study.

Bullying is a significant problem among America's youth, the researchers found. Data on nearly 45,000 adolescents aged 10 to 17 from the 2007 National Survey of Children's Health revealed the prevalence of bullying was about 15 percent among these young people.

The study, published online Oct. 18 in the American Journal of Public Health, also revealed that black, Latino and impoverished children with emotional, developmental or behavioral problems were more likely to bully.

Children whose parents were angry with them or felt they were difficult to supervise also were associated with higher odds of being a bully. The children of mothers with mental health issues also were linked to greater odds of bullying.

Compared to bullies, kids who were not bullies typically completed their homework and also had parents who communicated with them and met their friends.

"High parental involvement and communication with children are associated with lower odds of bullying perpetration," the study's authors said in a journal news release.

"Evaluations of school-based programs that engage parents have suggested that parental involvement may be an essential component of effective interventions but that it is often difficult to implement," the researchers concluded.

Friday, October 19, 2012

Taking Terror Out of Nightmares: Tips for Parents

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SUNDAY, Oct. 14 (HealthDay News) -- Nightmares are common in children and upsetting for both youngsters and parents, but there are some things you can do to manage and prevent them, an expert says.

You should never ignore a child's nightmare-related cries in the middle of the night and you should go to the child immediately, Dr. Tom Jackson, a California psychiatrist who specializes in treating sleep problems in children, said in a news release.

If you feel angry, frustrated or impatient with the child, take a few moments to calm yourself before going into the child's room. At this important moment, your child should not feel any negative emotions from you, Jackson said.

Comfort and calm your child by cuddling, gently stroking the child's head or back, and reassuring him or her with comforting words. Listen to your child's fears with empathy, understanding that those fears are real and should not be discounted.

Remind your child that it was only a dream, but remember that young children don't yet understand that dreams aren't real, Jackson said. Help your child take charge of dreams by suggesting, for example, that he or she imagine the nightmare ending in a happy way.

Preventing nightmares is the best solution and there are many ways to do this, Jackson said.

Make bedtime a comfortable and safe experience for your child. This can include relaxation-inducing rituals such as reading; having a bath or gentle massage; drinking a mug of warm herbal, caffeine-free tea; or something as simple as being tucked in with hugs and kisses.

If your child has frequent nightmares, talk together during the day to pinpoint what underlying fears may be causing the bad dreams and then try to resolve those fears, Jackson suggested.

It's also a good idea to analyze your child's daily routine to determine if there are things happening at school, home or elsewhere that could be causing nightmares. This includes monitoring your child's television shows and video games.

If nightmares continue even after you've taken steps to prevent them, it may be a good idea to discuss the issue with your child's doctor, Jackson said.