Clinical pediatrics
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Congenital heart disease (CHD) is often associated with intellectual, developmental, and academic late effects related to the diagnosis itself and treatment. This literature review examines what is currently understood about these intellectual and academic deficits. It appears that children with CHD, and particularly those with cyanotic CHD, are at risk for significant impairments in visual spatial skills, visual motor skills, and overall processing speed. Early neurocognitive interventions, especially with younger children, may prove beneficial for remediating some of these deficits.
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Clinical pediatrics · Jun 2003
Comparative StudyTemporal artery temperature measurements in healthy infants, children, and adolescents.
A noninvasive temporal artery thermometer that uses arterial heat balance technology has been compared to rectal and ear thermometry and is available in the marketplace. This study was undertaken to establish mean temperatures and temperatures 2 standard deviations above the mean for healthy infants, children, and adolescents. Temperatures were measured in healthy patients 0 to 18 years of age using a noninvasive temporal artery thermometer. ⋯ Mean temperatures and temperatures 2 standard deviations above the mean were: 37.1 degrees C (38.1 degrees C) for 383 infants 0 to 2 months; 36.9 degrees C (37.9 degrees C) for 860 children 3 to 47 months; 36.8 degrees C (37.8 degrees C) for 680 children 4 to 9 years; and 36.7 degrees C (37.8 degrees C) for 423 adolescents 10 to 18 years. There were no significant differences in temperatures in white compared to African-American children, children with or without perspiration on their forehead, or between measurements taken on the left compared to the right side of the forehead. This study provides information about temporal artery temperatures in healthy infants and children that can serve as a basis for interpreting temperature measurements in ill children when the same instrument is used.
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To determine whether accelerated intravenous (i.v.) rehydration using a new Isotonic Dehydration Worksheet results in: (1) complications in serum sodium or volume status, and (2) decreased duration of i.v. fluid therapy or length of hospital stay, we conducted a retrospective cohort study utilizing chart review. An intervention group of 98 children, ages 1 month to 12 years, treated with the Isotonic Dehydration Worksheet from December 2000 through March 2001 was compared to a control group of 61 children treated from December 1999 through March 2000 before introduction of the Worksheet. ⋯ Introduction of an accelerated rehydration protocol was well-tolerated by patients but did not result in a significant decrease in the outcome variables examined. Other factors may have a greater impact on the outcome variables, and a prospective study to address these questions is planned.