Objective: To assess psychiatric status after meningococcal disease. Method: Cohort study of 66 children (34 boys, 32 girls) ages 4 to 17 years admitted to pediatric hospitals with meningococcal disease. The main outcome measure was psychiatric disorder (1-year period and point prevalence on the Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia…

The aim of the study was to investigate self-reported health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in children and adolescents with myelomeningocele (MMC) and to examine the impact of clinical impairments and limitations in activities of daily living (ADL). Fifty patients (28 females, 22 males) between 8 and 16 years of age (mean age 12y 1mo [SD 2y…

Background: Suicide ranks as the third leading cause of death for adolescents. Recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicate that the adolescent suicide rate increased 18% between 2003 and 2004. Sport may represent a promising protective factor against adolescent suicide. This study examined the relative risk of…

As parents and caregivers, their job is to help their children become happy, healthy, and productive members of society. They try to balance the desire to protect their children with their need to become independent young adults. This can be a struggle for parents of teens with seizures, since there are so many challenges they may face. Teenagers…

The Kaiser Family Foundation released a report entitled "Kids and Media Use" in the United States that concluded that children's use of media--including television, computers, Internet, video games, and phones--may be one of the primary contributor's to the poor fitness and obesity of many of today's adolescents. The present study examines the…

Background: Childhood obesity is an impending epidemic. This article is an overview of different interventions conducted in school settings so as to guide efforts for an effective management of obesity in children, thus minimizing the risk of adult obesity and related cardiovascular risk. Methods: PubMed and OVID Medline databases were searched…

Relations between marital aggression (psychological and physical) and children's health were examined. Children's emotional insecurity was assessed as a mediator of these relations, with distinctions made between marital aggression against mothers and fathers and ethnicity (African American or European American), socioeconomic status, and child…

The broad array of data presented each year in the "KIDS COUNT Data Book" is intended to illuminate the status of America's children and to assess trends in their well-being. By updating the assessment every year, KIDS COUNT provides ongoing benchmarks that can be used to see how states have advanced or regressed over time. Readers can also use…

Reported here are the results of analyses to describe the patterns of identification and academic and developmental outcomes for children with disabilities, conducted as part of the 2004 National Assessment of the implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). This report provides background context for National…

There has been a recent slowdown in the decline of rates of tuberculosis (TB) in the United States. However, there are disparities in TB diagnosis between U.S.-born and foreign-born persons and between Whites and minorities. Measures for achieving TB elimination include identification of high-risk persons, including children and adolescents, at…

This most recent Iowa Kids Count data book, "Iowa Kids Count 2010: Trends in the Well-Being of Iowa Children," provides data on 20 different indicators of child and family well-being at the United States, Iowa, substate and county level. The annually produced data book presents health, education, welfare and economic data including…

This study investigated whether clothing can be perceived as a form of encouragement for success in a weight management exercise program. A small (n = 30) sample of children and parents, enrolled in a weight-management exercise program, responded to a survey instrument that included questions regarding fit and comfort of the clothing children wore…

School health clinics are one way to meet the objectives in "Healthy People 2010" for adolescent health. To determine the relationship between adolescent health status and use of the school health clinics in four Mississippi high schools, the Child Health and Illness Profile-Adolescent Edition (CHIP-AE) was used. The CHIP-AE identifies…

More children with chronic illnesses are attending school, and some of them struggle academically because of issues related to their health. School-based case management has been suggested as one strategy to improve the academic success of these children. This study tracked the academic, health, and quality of life outcomes for 114 children with…

Background: In recent years, a number of tragedies have been linked to the Goth culture. Most alarming have been the acts of violence, suicide, and self-harm found among teens. Teachers, parents, administrators, and fellow students are at a loss on how to relate to such students. They are unsure what role they might play in addressing some of the…