 |
|
Oak Tree Pediatrics
|
|
Seasonal and current medical topics
|
|
|
|
GENERAL HEALTH TOPICS
|
|
|
Viral Throat Infections - One of the most basic drives that parents have is protecting their
kids. Protection from hunger, danger, and illness. If the child is sick, the parent has an elemental need to do something
to make the little one well. So when the parent is told that Johnny has a viral throat infection, and is not given a antibiotic,
they look confused and wonder why they took their kid to the doctor in the first place. This a daily topic of conversation
in the office. There are two types of micro-organisms which cause most of the infections in people. They are bacteria and
viruses. Examples of a bacteria are Strep, Staph, Haemophilus influenza Group B. Examples of viruses are Chicken Pox, Measles,
Adenovirus. We have lots of medicine for bacteria. Antibiotic means anitbacterial. We have very few medicines for viruses.
But as far as healthy kids are concerned, this is not a major problem in most cases. The reason is that little kids are equipped
by nature with immunologic machinery to kill viruses. Many people think that if it's a virus, it goes away on its own
There is nothing you can do for it. Actually this is not correct. Your child's immune system is throwing off the virus.
It does not go away by itself. And there are things you as a parent can do to help Johnny's immune system to throw off
the virus. First, if your child is old enough, gargling with salt water several times a day will kill viruses. Second, the
fever is one of the body's major mechanisms for throwing of the illness. It's not the virus causing the fever, it's
the body's response to the virus that causes the fever. If you child's temperature is low grade, 99F or 100F, and
he's happily wolfing down ice cream to sooth his throat, don't give him Tylenol. Let the fever do its' job and
kill that dratted virus. Of course if the kid is really hot, give the Tylenol. But be guided in your decision of giving Tylenol
by your understanding of what the fever does.Third, vitamins are a must. Good quality multiple vitamins with trace elements
keep the immune system at peak efficiency. I recommend daily vitamins to everyone. If you have any questions, give
your Doc a call. Dr. D.
|
|
Pertussis This past May there were a few confirmed cases of pertussis in one of the Egg Harbor Township intermediate
schools. They were reported, appropriate surveillance and treatment were initiated, and no further cases appeared. The
take home lesion is that the disease is still with us. That means we all need to maintain our protection against
pertussis. And that means that we all need to get the new adult DPT shot. Check with your Doc. If he/she can not get you the
vaccine, give me a call. I can send you to one who can. And it is most important for brand new parents
to get the adult DPT shot. Not only has the Pertussis rate gone up, but the fatality rate from Pertussis has risen. In the
past fifteen years, the fatality rate has nearly tripled. And the people who are dying are kids under six months of age. They
are getting Pertussis from their parents. Parents, get the shot. Dr. D.
|
|
New State regulations for vaccines to enter Sixth Grade - The State of New Jersey has decided that all students
entering Sixth Grade must get two new vaccines. One is an adult DPT shot, the other is the newest shot to protect
against Neisseria meningitidis infections. It is a good idea to get these shots because the diseases they protect
against are incapacitating and lethal. The problem is that the Adacel vaccine, one of the adult DPT shots, and the Menactra
vaccine, the Neisseria meningitidis shot, can only be given on or after the child's 11th birthday. Some children will
still be ten when they enter Sixth Grade, and cannot receive the shots. The state is aware of this. No child who is ten when
September rolls around will be prevented from entering Six Grade for failing to get vaccinated. The kids have a
two week window after their 11th birthday to get the shots. All the parents need do is schedule their children for the shots
in the two weeks after the 11th birthday. For the kids who will be 11 when entering Six Grade, just schedule them for the
shots at some appropriate during the Summer. And remember, all adults need the Adacel vaccine also. So parents,
make an appointment with your doc to get the Adacel vaccine. And have you kid hold your hand when you get the shot. If
your doc cannot provide the vaccine, call me and I'll put you in touch with one who can. Dr.
D. Reposted June 29, 2010 I read an article recently in Pediatrics about the increasing danger
of kids swallowing button batteries. When button batteries first came out, they were smaller and weaker than the ones available
now. The first batteries usually just slid through the kid without any problem. Now, the batteries are larger and stronger.
They are getting lodged in the esophagus and start damaging the tissue they touch. There is a two hour window to get the battery
out of the esophagus before sever damage occurs. I would urge all parents to ensure that if you have equipment with button
batteries, said equipment and batteries are nowhere near the kids. And do not buy any toys for the kids with these batteries.
If you have any questions, please call me in the office. Dr. D
|
|
Posted June 10, 2010 Summer is just around the corner. And it should be a hot, humid,
hopefully fun time for all. Here are some basics I like parents to remember to keep everything fun and safe. 1. If you have
easy access to water, whether you have a pool, the neighbor has a pool, you live near the beach or lake, you plan on spending
time at the beach or lake, you must learn Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation, CPR. It's not the cop or EMT dashing to the
scene with lights and sirens that saves the kid found at the bottom of the pool. It's the Mom or Dad, or older sibling
who knows CPR who saves the kid. The American Red Cross office on Franklyn Boulevard in Pleasantville gives courses. I recommend
all the teenagers take the course also.
2. Lyme disease. A tick has to be on you for 24 hours to give you
lyme disease. As long as you thouroughly search the kids for ticks, and remove the criters with tweezers. they shouldn't
get lyme disease. But you need to be thorough. And please do not try the folk remedies for tick removal. Do not try to make
the tick back out of the kid by covering it with petroleum jelly, or putting a burnt match to the back of the tick. These
procedures will shock the tick. If you shock the tick, the tick will vomit into the kid. The procedure for tick removal is
straddle the head and mouth parts of the tick with the tips of fine point tweezers, press lightly into the tissue, grap the
head, mouth parts, and a small piece ot tissue, and pull up firmly. If you get a piece of skin with the tick, you got the
whole tick. 3 Sun screen. It's not the ozone, it's not carbon dioxide, it's the Sun. There is far too
much skin cancer out there. Please put SPF 50 on you and the kids. And get them shirts with a high blocking capacity also.
A regular T-shirt has just about an SPF capacity of 8. 4 Rabies. Most kids love animals. I encourage pets for kids
for all the obvious, and not so obvious, reasons. (as me about the chicken era our family went through) But, rabies is always
a potential issue. Make sure all the pets in the neighborhood are vaccinated for rabies. Make sure the kids do not go near
any animals they do not know. And be especially careful to stay well clear of the seven common wild animals that are more
likely than most to carry rabies. Those are, bats, foxes, skunks, raccoons, ground hogs, wild cats, and coyotes. Posted June 24 5 It may hit 100 degrees today. This Summer looks like it's going to be the classic "hazey,
hot, and humid" Summer. Great for the beach and bar-b-que. But it also means dehydration is a risk. Make sure you
and the kids have a large glass of water with every meal, and plenty of water breaks during the day.
|
|
Enter supporting content here
|
|
|
