https://medicalxpress.com/pediatrics-news/ en-us Latest medical news and research in Pediatrics Scientists at Children's Medical Center Research Institute at UT Southwestern (CRI) have discovered why babies born with a rare inborn error of metabolism called GPT2 deficiency suffer from severe neurological impairment. Using their newly developed biosensor to track the essential metabolite alpha-ketoglutarate (αKG), researchers found that the mitochondrial enzyme GPT2 and transporter protein SLC25A11 work together to control the production and transport of αKG from the mitochondria to the nucleus. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-metabolite-rare-childhood-brain-disorder.html Fri, 17 Jul 2026 10:00:01 EDT news703496892 Body Mass Index (BMI) has long been used in public health and clinical settings as a simple tool to classify an individual's physical status based on their height and weight. Originally developed in the 1830s by Belgian mathematician Adolphe Quetelet, BMI was designed to describe the characteristics of the average man rather than to assess an individual's health, and it did not account for age, sex, ethnicity or body composition. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-body-index-aims-bmi-babies.html Fri, 17 Jul 2026 07:50:02 EDT news703491612 A low-cost antiseptic treatment routinely used in health care settings could help reduce the risk of life-threatening infections in newborn babies, according to new research led by scientists at City St George's. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-simple-antiseptic-approach-deadly-infections.html Thu, 16 Jul 2026 15:20:07 EDT news703427765 Scientists from St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and collaborators have identified the RNA-binding protein RBM5 as a potential vulnerability in a set of difficult-to-treat childhood leukemias. They characterized how RBM5 regulates and interacts with the well-known cancer-driving protein MYC, which has long been considered impossible to effectively and directly target with existing cancer drugs. The findings, published today in Leukemia, present a new opportunity to develop targeted therapeutic interventions. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-rbm5-disrupt-undruggable-myc-childhood.html Thu, 16 Jul 2026 15:00:02 EDT news703427405 Long before a baby's ears are functional, the brain is already building the circuitry needed for hearing, according to new research from Johns Hopkins University. Published in the journal Science Advances, the study in mice identifies a previously unknown neural "shortcut" that organizes the auditory system before birth, offering new insight into how the auditory system prepares to process sound and eventually learn language. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-babies-brains-wiring.html Thu, 16 Jul 2026 14:30:02 EDT news703427394 Having an epidural during labor is not associated with clinically significant increased risks of harm to newborn babies, including brain injury, severe breathing problems, sepsis and death, or cerebral palsy later in childhood, according to a study published in The BMJ. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-epidurals-linked-newborns-children.html Wed, 15 Jul 2026 18:30:06 EDT news703314795 Dextroamphetamine and methylphenidate have been found to be equally effective in the treatment of ADHD in children, but greater weight loss was observed in children taking dextroamphetamine, according to an Australian study published in the Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-adhd-medications-equally-effective-children.html Wed, 15 Jul 2026 12:00:03 EDT news703328806 More than half (57%) of children born before 32 weeks were not ready for school at age 5, including in areas such as communication and language and physical and emotional development. Those born earlier, at 23–24 weeks, were up to three times more likely to miss expected developmental milestones than those born at 31 weeks. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-preterm-birth-impacts-early.html Tue, 14 Jul 2026 11:00:04 EDT news703229436 Like other teenagers, teens on the autism spectrum are itching to exercise their social muscles. They hope for new friends, fun with people who share their interests, maybe even a romantic relationship. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-brains-teens-autism-tune-unfamiliar.html Mon, 13 Jul 2026 15:00:06 EDT news703140918 In "Llama Llama Mad at Mama," a popular children's book from 2007, a little Llama Llama goes to the grocery store with his mama and becomes overwhelmed by all the sounds, sights, smells and shopping decisions happening around him. In a scene familiar to every parent, the cartoon animal has an epic meltdown in his shopping cart, screaming and throwing the contents of his mama's shopping list on the floor. Mama Llama gets down to his level and calms him down by turning shopping into a fun game. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-screens-calm-child-bad.html Mon, 13 Jul 2026 14:59:04 EDT news703173493 Testosterone may play a bigger role in the emotional development of girls entering puberty than previously thought, according to new research from the University of Georgia published in Psychoneuroendocrinology. Greater changes in the hormone were linked to more emotional difficulties among girls ages 10–12, even when accounting for levels of other hormones. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-hormonal-puberty-linked-emotional-distress.html Mon, 13 Jul 2026 14:40:01 EDT news703164002 Exposure to high temperatures during pregnancy and early infancy is associated with slower growth of the thalamus later in childhood, according to a study led by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), a center supported by the "la Caixa" Foundation. The findings, published in Environment International, suggest that heat exposure during the earliest stages of life may have lasting effects on brain development. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-exposure-pregnancy-infancy-children-brain.html Mon, 13 Jul 2026 11:13:20 EDT news703159963 A new study from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) has found that children exposed to secondhand smoke have significantly poorer sleep quality and greater sleep fragmentation, independent of the severity of their breathing problems. The prospective clinical trial, published Monday in the journal Scientific Reports, uses objective sleep-lab data and biological markers to demonstrate that tobacco smoke directly disrupts pediatric sleep per se, rather than simply worsening existing airway blockages. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-secondhand-independently-disrupts-children.html Mon, 13 Jul 2026 11:08:40 EDT news703159692