https://medicalxpress.com/childrens-health-news/ en-us Latest health news and information about Children's Health Admission to a pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) can have lasting psychological effects on both children receiving treatment and their parents. To investigate the effects of psychosocial interventions on parents' emotional health, researchers searched five major academic databases for studies published through January 2026 and analyzed eight randomized controlled trials evaluating psychosocial interventions in parents of children admitted to the PICU. The interventions included visits to follow-up clinics, psychological screening with referral, telephone-based psychoeducation, palliative care consultations and acceptance and commitment therapy delivered via videoconference. The findings are published in the journal Intensive and Critical Care Nursing. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-mental-health-parents-pediatric-intensive.html Thu, 22 Oct 2026 13:40:16 EDT news711891626 Human neural stem cells that help form the brain and spinal cord are highly susceptible to SARS-CoV-2, including omicron variants BA.1 and BA.2, according to new research from the University of California, Riverside. The findings raise concerns about the potential effects of maternal COVID-19 infection on early nervous system development and underscore the importance of monitoring children exposed to the virus before birth. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-human-neural-stem-cells-susceptible.html Thu, 22 Oct 2026 12:00:01 EDT news711888721 Researchers from the University of California San Diego have found that adding emotion management skills to family-based behavioral weight management may help adolescents maintain weight loss after treatment ends. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-adding-emotion-skills-family-weight.html Thu, 22 Oct 2026 11:00:29 EDT news711814423 New research from Advocate Health's Advocate Aurora Research Institute suggests that giving pediatric residents hands-on training with medical devices may help them communicate more effectively with the families of children frequently hospitalized in pediatric units. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-pediatric-residents-communicate-families-medically.html Thu, 22 Oct 2026 09:20:14 EDT news711876735 Emotional overeating, sometimes called "comfort eating," is not just an innocent habit. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-children-prone-problems-life.html Thu, 22 Oct 2026 08:40:06 EDT news711872415 During the first weeks of pregnancy, developing cells are already laying the foundation for the brain. Iron plays a major role in the organization and shaping of cells during this stage of gestation. Epidemiological studies suggest that mothers with low iron levels during the first trimester of pregnancy have a higher risk of giving birth to a child who develops cognitive impairments like autism, ADHD and learning disabilities. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-prenatal-iron-deficiency-brain.html Thu, 22 Oct 2026 08:00:13 EDT news711872821 Stomach pain and other gastrointestinal complaints are common among children and adolescents. When symptoms recur over a long period, the cause may be a form of DGBI (disorders of gut-brain interaction), in which communication between the brain and the gut does not function as it should. This can affect both intestinal motility and the way pain is perceived. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-hypnosis-relieve-stomach-pain.html Thu, 22 Oct 2026 08:00:01 EDT news711870255 Canada's youngest generation is off to a good start for being physically active, but there's also room to grow, according to a first-ever national assessment focused on children under age 5, led by a University of Alberta researcher. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-canada-youngest-generation-healthy-screen.html Wed, 21 Oct 2026 21:20:04 EDT news711795504 The effects of screen time on young children may depend on more than just how long they spend in front of a device, according to a new publication from the University of Georgia. The study is published in the Journal of Evidence-Based Social Work. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-screen-bad-children.html Wed, 21 Oct 2026 18:00:22 EDT news711807258 Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center and Johns Hopkins Children's Center report that bone marrow transplant using half-matched family donors achieved a 96% survival rate among child, adolescent and young adult patients with severe aplastic anemia, a rare, life-threatening disorder in which the bone marrow fails to produce enough healthy blood cells. The approach expands access to potentially curative treatment for patients who do not have a fully matched donor. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-bone-marrow-transplant-options-children.html Wed, 21 Oct 2026 16:40:10 EDT news711814377 Researchers from Newcastle University and Great Ormond Street Hospital have identified new predictors of relapse in children and young people with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) treated with the immunotherapy drug blinatumomab, as part of a U.K.-wide study. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-personalized-medicine-breakthrough-childhood-leukemia.html Wed, 21 Oct 2026 15:40:01 EDT news711806799 Routine vaccine program disruptions and under-resourced health systems are driving a global decline in childhood measles vaccination rates post-COVID-19, a new study has found. University of Queensland researchers examined measles cases, deaths and vaccine gaps in children under 5 across 204 countries and territories from 1990 to 2023, finding estimated cases rose 40% from 11.1 million in 2019 to 15.6 million in 2023. The findings are published in Nature Medicine. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-childhood-measles-vaccination-fall-worldwide.html Wed, 21 Oct 2026 14:20:04 EDT news711800749 Researchers have identified two common drugs that may, when given together during pregnancy, prevent premature births. The finding is the fruit of a new Stanford Medicine–led, artificial intelligence–powered technique for screening drugs to prevent early labor. It uses a comprehensive atlas of the immune system, which the researchers built to be accurate at a cell-by-cell level, to create "digital twins" of the immune systems of individual pregnant women for virtual drug testing. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-digital-twins-immune-pregnancy-drugs.html Wed, 21 Oct 2026 14:00:16 EDT news711792902 We're often told parenting is one of the most rewarding things we'll ever do. But as many parents will attest, it is also full of very difficult moments. And sometimes these moments seem almost constant. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-enjoying-parent-youre-complicated.html Wed, 21 Oct 2026 13:00:24 EDT news711798136 A Japanese study found that higher postpartum depression scores were associated with greater mother-infant bonding difficulties. Repeated assessments identified varied symptom patterns, including mothers whose bonding difficulties increased during the first three months. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-tracking-maternal-depression-bonding-early.html Wed, 21 Oct 2026 11:20:21 EDT news711795279 Teens who use their phones late into the evening suffer from delays in falling asleep, shorter total sleep time and sleep that's more restless and broken, researchers report in JAMA Pediatrics. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-smartphones-teens.html Wed, 21 Oct 2026 10:40:05 EDT news711794632 A deep learning algorithm analyzing one fundus photograph can predict progression to moderate or high myopia, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, held Oct. 9 to 12 in New Orleans. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-deep-fundus-myopia.html Wed, 21 Oct 2026 10:00:29 EDT news711794622 The food choices teenagers make could have implications beyond their physical health, with new research from the University of Sydney linking food choices and sugar consumption to the later emergence of depression and anxiety symptoms. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-extra-fruit-linked-depression-anxiety.html Tue, 20 Oct 2026 23:00:01 EDT news711694124 More people have likely been vaping, and with greater frequency, in the U.S. since 2013–14, suggests a data analysis published online in the journal Tobacco Control. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-substantially-people-vaping-frequently.html Tue, 20 Oct 2026 18:30:01 EDT news711633491 South Africa introduced a vaccination for human papillomavirus (HPV) in public schools in 2014. The program offered the vaccination to fourth-grade girls ages 9 and older. Uptake was high from the start. About 87% of eligible girls received at least one dose during the first year. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-south-africa-hpv-vaccination-girls.html Tue, 20 Oct 2026 17:40:22 EDT news711720168 Worldwide about 13.5 million children have never received a vaccine at all. These are known as zero-dose children. Reaching them is central to the Immunization Agenda 2030, a global drive to ensure that everyone has access to the vaccines they need. Gavi, the vaccine alliance, has built its strategy around finding and reaching them. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-millions-children-vaccinated-tools.html Tue, 20 Oct 2026 17:20:14 EDT news711720154 A nutritional supplement taken during pregnancy may support fetal brain development and improve children's cognitive performance and social behavior, according to new research from the University of Colorado Anschutz. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-prenatal-supplement-linked-child-cognition.html Tue, 20 Oct 2026 15:50:01 EDT news711729241 Scientists co-led by St. Jude Children's Research Hospital have identified a potential therapeutic vulnerability in some forms of osteosarcoma. A combination approach described today in the Journal of Experimental Medicine slowed tumor growth and prolonged survival in preclinical models of this pediatric bone cancer. The therapies degraded EP300 (a protein that is co-opted to express oncogenes in many cancers) and inhibited AKT (a well-known cancer drug target), highlighting the combination's clinical potential. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-combination-therapy-reveals-potential-vulnerability.html Tue, 20 Oct 2026 15:20:19 EDT news711720280 In early 2025, the reality for transgender youth shifted in the United States after a deluge of executive orders from the president directly threatened and restricted rights for the demographic. Transgender youth already face increased mental health distress compared to their peers, so did these events further worsen their mental health? And how did they affect their parents? https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-parents-transgender-youth-mental-health.html Tue, 20 Oct 2026 15:20:10 EDT news711719406 Social transition for trans young people is an evolving process involving changes in names, pronouns and appearance, according to new research. The research, led by Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI), reinforces the need for families, schools and health care providers to support young people in finding the form of gender expression that feels right for them, rather than expecting a single gender affirmation journey. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-social-transition-trans-young-people.html Tue, 20 Oct 2026 13:20:11 EDT news711718742 Children of parents with bipolar disorder are known to be at elevated risk of developing mental health problems as they grow older, such as depression, anxiety, substance use problems and bipolar disorder. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-childhood-environment-term-mental-health.html Tue, 20 Oct 2026 13:00:15 EDT news711709460 Children of parents who have melanoma, a serious type of skin cancer that starts in the cells that make pigment, have twice the lifetime risk of developing the disease themselves. A researcher from Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah (the U) has developed a successful program to teach melanoma patients and their children behaviors that will help prevent the onset of melanoma later in life. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-young-skin-approach-melanoma-children.html Tue, 20 Oct 2026 10:40:02 EDT news711711061 Preschool students who received supplemental instruction to build their social, emotional and language skills reported a higher quality of life almost two decades later than peers who did not receive the same instruction, according to an interdisciplinary team of Penn State researchers. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-social-emotional-skills-preschool-life.html Tue, 20 Oct 2026 10:20:07 EDT news711706794 Despite millions of years of evolution, the development of the human fetus remains a complex process that is vulnerable to genetic, environmental and metabolic disruptions. These disruptions could result in developmental abnormalities, starting with one of the first organs to begin developing in the fetus that continues to develop after birth: the brain. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-ai-symmetry-prenatal-diagnosis-reliable.html Tue, 20 Oct 2026 09:20:39 EDT news711705301 A modeling study suggests that replacing universal hepatitis B vaccination at birth with delayed vaccination or a shared decision-making approach, as recommended by the U.S. federal government this year, could lead to substantially more chronic hepatitis B infections among U.S. children. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-hepatitis-vaccination-significantly-infections.html Mon, 19 Oct 2026 17:00:05 EDT news711621223