Screening for autism in childhood has been advocated as a part of standard care. Challenges exist with screening implementation and performance of screening tools in clinical practice. This study aimed to examine the validity and feasibility of using the Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers, Revised with Follow-Up (M-CHAT-R/F) for screening…

The "UN Convention on the Rights of the Child" is one of the most widely-ratified human rights treaties, yet the visibility of children in the early years, in the mandatory government reports to the "UN Committee on the Rights of the Child" and in the Committee's concluding observations to States Parties, is relatively low…

Globally, malnutrition is an issue that has never been overcome, even after a series of efforts by experts, which have never been impressive. The world's malnutrition burden remains unsatisfactory since malnutrition is solely responsible for more illnesses than other reasons. Malnutrition continues to be a significant problem in Malaysia. The most…

Communication between a child's health care provider, child care and other community providers (cross-system communication) may facilitate access and referral to early intervention (EI). This study examined (a) factors associated with cross-system communication and (b) whether cross-system communication was associated with receiving EI among U.S.…

Early relational health (ERH) is not a new field, but an enhanced focus on knowledge from infant and early childhood mental health (IECMH), neurodevelopment, and related fields. ERH brings attention to the centrality of safe, stable, and nurturing relationships and resilient communities as drivers for current and future health and well-being of…

Early nutrition supplementation's effect on children's reading ability was assessed during the conduct of the study. The study methodology followed children who participated in an early nutrition supplementation intervention and conducted a reading test to measure how well the children read. The effect of school resource endowment on student…

This study tested the hypothesis that exposure of children prior to their third birthday to procedures requiring general anesthesia is associated with an increased incidence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in later life. This study employed a nested, 1:2 matched-case control study design using ASD cases identified in a population-based birth…

Globally, an estimated 15 million children are born prematurely each year, resulting in a high burden of under-five mortality and neurodevelopmental disability. Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) is a key intervention to support the development of preterm infants. However, evidence on the impact of KMC in routine care settings remains limited. This paper…

To understand the broader societal context for supporting the healthy development and well-being of infants and toddlers, the following excerpt from the "State of Babies Yearbook: 2022 Executive Summary" presents key findings on the status of America's families with young children. As of August 2022, the reconciliation bill proposed in…

In this article, the authors describe a 3-year initiative in New York state, led by the New York Center for Child Development (NYCCD), through which more than 2,500 mental health clinicians were trained in the DC:0-5. Funding was provided through the creative use of the Preschool Development, Birth to Five federally funded Block Grant, and…

DC:0-5™: Diagnostic Classification of Mental Health and Developmental Disorders of Infancy and Early Childhood (ZERO TO THREE, 2016) emphasizes the centrality of relationships for young children's development and psychopathology. The authors share the story of a young child and his mother to illustrate the use of DC:0-5, with an emphasis on how…

The authors of this article identify the status of the COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria and propose the use of a classic strategic planning paradigm to mitigate its spread until it may be completely arrested. Vaccines have been developed to combat the disease which current evidence suggests is spread by respiratory droplets among people who are in…

Breastfeeding duration has been linked to maternal and child health. Current-status (or interval-censored) data offers a more reliable measure of duration and cessation of breastfeeding than approaches that rely on recall, due to high percentage of 'heaping'. The present study explores the determinants of breastfeeding termination within the first…

Stunting is an important issue as it leads to many adverse consequences on children's health. Pakistan is in public health crisis due to higher stunting rates in children. World Health Organization entails the prevalence of stunting to be less than 2.5% in a healthy population, but every third child is stunted in Punjab (largest province of…

In the spring of 2020, the emerging COVID-19 pandemic prompted states across the country to mandate that most early childhood education programs close, leaving families with young children scrambling to adapt to full-time caregiving and leaving educators uncertain of their economic and professional future. For many communities, this hardship was…