Children's health
10 May 2008
New technique determines that the number of fat cells remains constant in all body types
The radioactive carbon-14 produced by above-ground nuclear testing in the 1950s and ’60s has helped researchers determine that the number of fat cells in a human’s body, whether lean or obese, is established during the teenage years. Changes in fat mass in adulthood can be attributed mainly to changes in…
Children's health
22 Apr 2008
Children with ADHD should get heart tests before treatment with stimulant drugs
Children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) should get careful cardiac evaluation and monitoring – including an electrocardiogram (ECG) – before treatment with stimulant drugs, a new American Heart Association statement recommends. The scientific statement on Cardiovascular Monitoring of Children and Adolescents with Heart Disease Receiving Stimulant Drugs is published…
Children's health
22 Apr 2008
High blood pressure on the rise in teens
The rising rate of obesity among kids and teens is now leading to other health problems in that age group, including diabetes, high blood pressure and vascular damage. Chronic high blood pressure can affect the heart and can cause the pumping chamber (the left ventricle) to become enlarged. Developing high…
Children's health
14 Apr 2008
Gene mutations found in many children with abnormally thick heart muscles
Most children with unexplained thickening of the heart muscle, called idiopathic cardiac hypertrophy, actually have a genetic mutation that affects cells that help the heart to contract, said researchers from Baylor College of Medicine and Harvard Medical School in a report that appears online in the New England Journal of…
Blood
06 Apr 2008
Angiotensin II Receptor Blockers (ARB)
Angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs) are a class of blood pressure lowering medications used to treat hypertension.
Children's health
13 Mar 2008
Preschoolers benefit from daycare program to prevent obesity
A preschool-based intervention program helped prevent early trends toward obesity and instilled healthy eating habits in multi-ethnic 2- to 5-year-olds, according to a report presented at the American Heart Association’s Conference on Nutrition, Physical Activity and Metabolism. "Nobody would dispute that we are experiencing an epidemic of obesity in this…
Children's health
12 Mar 2008
Heart Transplant
Heart transplant (heart replacement) surgery involves replacing a damaged heart with a heart from a donor, to increase life expectancy.
Children's health
03 Mar 2008
Urine protein may be present before hypertension diagnosis in at-risk adolescents
A protein that is an early indicator of kidney dysfunction in adults may predict hypertension in black adolescents, Medical College of Georgia researchers have found. “Microalbuminuria, excessive amounts of albumin in the urine, is a common problem among diabetics,” says Dr. Gregory Harshfield, director of the Medical College of Georgia’s…
Blood
19 Feb 2008
Herpes virus link to complications in pregnancy
Researchers at Adelaide’s Women’s & Children’s Hospital and the University of Adelaide have made a world-first discovery that links viral infection with high blood pressure during pregnancy and pre-term birth. The research findings, published in the British Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, are a major step forward in unravelling the…
