Children's Health News

The American Academy of Pediatrics says new evidence and research not only show that spanking affects a child’s brain development and increases aggression in young children as they get older, but that it isn’t a good way to teach children responsibility and self-control.

The CDC still hasn't figured out what is causing AFM, which typically leads to weakness in the arms and legs.

Researchers have been searching for possible treatments for acute flaccid myelitis, or AFM. Lab tests showed that fluoxetine had antiviral effects against a virus associated with the disorder, so some experts had suggested that the antidepressant might be a possible treatment for the disorder.

Recurrent or chronic sore throat is the most common reason for getting a tonsillectomy. Evidence shows that the surgery results in modest, short-term reductions in recurring, severe sore throats in children aged 3 to 15, but not in those with milder symptoms.

Kids born in the summer and who spend many hours playing on screens may be more at risk of becoming nearsighted, new research suggests.

Surgery performed by a St. Louis doctor has restored the ability to walk in a boy paralyzed by a polio-like condition called acute flaccid myelitis (AFM), CBS News reported

Between 2012 and 2016, investigators say, more than 293,000 children -- at an average age of just over 13 -- were diagnosed with some type of mental illness in a pediatric emergency room setting.

Twice as many child gun deaths occur in states with the most lenient gun regulation, compared with states where gun laws are strictest, researchers at Stanford University's School of Medicine have found.

Infants prescribed antibiotics faced a 26 percent greater risk for childhood obesity by the age of 3 than kids who didn’t get the drugs, according to a review of the children’s histories in the U.S. military health care system.

Adenovirus occur on on unclean surfaces and medical instruments, and common disinfectants may not remove them, CNN reported.

Adenovirus typically causes cold-like symptoms, but can be fatal in weakened patients. The children at Wanaque have developmental disorders or immune deficiencies.

Researchers have found risks for language delay among children whose mothers had exposure to common chemicals known as phthalates.

More than 8,300 children and teenagers come to the emergency department each year to be treated for a gunshot wound, at a cost of roughly $270 million a year in hospital bills, researchers report.

There have been 25 cases associated with the outbreak.

Researchers studying flu vaccine effectiveness among children ages 2-17 have discovered that last year's shot will not in any way reduce the flu-fighting strength of this year's shot.

A seventh child has died after infection with an adenovirus at a health care facility in New Jersey, officials confirmed Wednesday. Eleven other children from the same facility are infected.

Children with severe obesity at 5 years old had almost 20 times the risk of a thin child of developing slipped capital femoral epiphysis (SCFE), a severe hip deformity, new research shows.

The good news is that the disease is very rare. Only one in 1 million people will get it, and most of them will recover without treatment. Still, because the disease is more likely to strike children, and because of the mysteries of it and because of the dramatic health effects, it gets more attention than it might otherwise.

In what researchers call “a breakthrough,” two clinical trials have found that two different three-drug treatment plans could help 90 percent of people with cystic fibrosis. “It’s not a cure,” said one of the lead researchers. “But it could be game-changing.”

The CDC on Tuesday reported 127 cases of a rare but devastating polio-like virus, partially paralyzing hundreds of children in 22 states. It’s the third wave of acute flaccid myelitis (AFM) to hit the United States since 2014.

Half of 2- to 5-year-olds are afraid of going to the doctor, according to a new survey. And some kids get so upset that 1 in 5 parents say they find it hard to concentrate on what the doctor or nurse is saying.

Decongestants should not be given to children younger than 6 because there's no evidence that they do any good, according to a new review published online Oct. 10 in the BMJ.

The condition, acute flaccid myelitis (AFM), was first identified in 2014, when there were 120 cases, NBC News reported.

A new survey has found that 74 percent of kids still receive unhealthy drinks or side items with their kids' meals when they eat fast food, despite many restaurants’ promises of more nutritious options for youngsters.

Short bursts of in-classroom activity can trim childhood obesity rates while helping elementary schools provide 30 minutes of daily exercise for students, researchers have found.