Bed Wetting & GoodNites

I got this question via email and thought you might benefit from the great information:

"I have a 6 year old grandson that wets the bed, his mother refuses to let me put a Goodnight on him because she says it will not help him to not wet the bed. I say it won't matter. I would really like to have an "expert" opinion, GoodNites good or bad?"

Pediatric Urologist Dr. Benjamin Rhee from OSF St. Francis Medical Center said, "I don't have a problem with GoodNite pull-ups for a child up to a certain age. We have kids up to age 12 that sometimes wear them. If they (the family) don't have a problem, we don't have a problem."

Jen: "Just to be clear, there is no chance that a child's bladder will become conditioned to GoodNites-causing more problems in the future?
Dr. Rhee. "No, there is no chance of training a child to go because they are wearing a diaper."

Jen: When should you be concerned if your child is still wetting the bed?
Dr. Rhee" If a child is going into first grade and still wetting the bed, they should be evaluated. They should get an x-ray of their bellies and they should have an ultrasound of their kidneys to make sure there isn't another problem that is causing the bed wetting."

Jen: What kind of a problem?
Dr.Rhee: "A lot of the time there isn't a problem, but they can have an anomaly of their bladders or an infection that leads to lots of constipation."

Jen: Is is common for kindergartners to still wet the bed?
Dr. Rhee: "It is very common for kids to still wet the bed at six years old. I see 4-5 kids that age a day if not more. I would tell you about 30% of kids who come see are for bed wetting issues. It doesn't always signify a problem. Most of the time when there is a problem, it's a chronic infection."

Jen: What message would you like to get out to parents of kids who wet the bed?
Dr. Rhee: "I think the thing moms need to work on is getting kids to pee and poop on their own during the day. If they have to run to the bathroom, that is a problem. I always tell mom we're going to work on the daytime issues first before you worry about bed wetting issues. It is a multi-factoral kind of a thing. A lot of kids have daytime and nighttime issue. They tend to hold pee and poop too long and cause irritation. Some kids will wet the bed until they outgrow it. There is nothing you can do. The majority of times at 9-10 yrs old it becomes a social issue because they can't go to sleep overs, camps, etc."

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

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Recalled Toys

If children are on your holiday gift list, beware. More than two dozen toys have been recalled this year for safety reasons. With safety in mind, the American Academy of Pediatrics has prepared a tips list.

November 2009 Recalls
December 2009 Recalls

-pick toys that suit kids' age, abilities and interest level.
-to prevent electric shocks, choose battery-operated instead of plug-in toys for kids under 10.
-keep young children away from toys with button batteries and magnets. these can cause serious and even fatal intestinal problems if swallowed.
-the academy also warns:pull toys with strings longer than 12 inches can be a strangulation hazard for babies.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Not sure what to get your loved ones? Give a Skin Dimensions gift card! Surprise your loved ones with the choice of massages, facials, bareMinerals makeup, manicures, pedicures or let them choose products from a selection of over 25 national and international brands of skincare. Gift cards available in any denomination. Purchase at Skin Dimensions Day Spa, Skin Dimensions Boutique or online.

Kids who can't play sports

For kids, playing sports can be a big deal. If they have a medical problem that prevents them from playing, medical intervention may be the best option. This story is about a family who took some big steps to allow their son to start walking again and ultimately playing sports.

FROM MEDSTAR: Dystonia is a complex problem related to mis-communication from the brain to the muscles. In kids, this condition can rule their lives. But a deep brain treatment can help. Kyle Hausler loves sports, but when he was twelve, he was sidelined by a condition that made it difficult to walk.

Kyle Hausler: Teen Dystonia Patient "I always wanted to be on crutches, but then after the first few days it hurt my arms and I was tired of it, and I just wanted to walk." He was diagnosed with dystonia, a neurological disorder that causes the muscles to spasm. In Kyle's case, it affected his feet and legs.

Dr. Michele Tagliati: neurologist "It looks like the brain loses the ability to pick and chose the right muscles that we need to perform a certain movement." He tried traditional treatments, like medicines and botulinum toxin injections.

Alison Hausler - Mother "But nothing was working. absolutely nothing was giving him any relief. and it was beginning to progress. so we started, you know, asking and talking about DBS." DBS, Deep Brain Stimulation, involves inserting thin wires into the Globus Pallidus, a region blamed for dystonia.

Dr. Ron Alterman, neurosurgeon "The wire that goes in is called a lead, and each lead has four contacts or electrodes, from which we can stimulate the brain." After post-surgical healng is complete, the electrodes are turned on.

Dr. Michele Tagliati - neurologist "And once stimulation starts, it goes on 24/7, day and night, and we never stop stimulating that particular area of the brain." Dr. Tagliati over the past several years, the mount sinai doctors have seen no neurologic complications.

Dr. Ron Alterman
"There's no question that given the potential benefit, that the upside of doing the surgery, far, far outweighs the downside." Kyle's doing great and participates on a travel soccer team as well as a basketball team. the mount sinai doctors are among the leading physicians offering this treatment. they say that as technology improves, it may be possible to cycle the stimulation on and off.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Not sure what to get your loved ones? Give a Skin Dimensions gift card! Surprise your loved ones with the choice of massages, facials, bareMinerals makeup, manicures, pedicures or let them choose products from a selection of over 25 national and international brands of skincare. Gift cards available in any denomination. Purchase at Skin Dimensions Day Spa, Skin Dimensions Boutique or online.

Possible Cause of Autism

I thought this was interesting..

FROM NBC: Some commonly-prescribed medications for pregnant women might increase the risk for autism-related disorders in children. The drugs are called "Beta 2 Adreneric Agonists. They are used to help control asthma in pregnant women or to stop pre-term labor.

Researchers from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine say there is evidence the drugs could increase the incidence of autism-spectrum disorders, cognitive problems or poor school performance in developing fetuses.

Researchers say more studies are needed to confirm the findings.. but that doctors may want to consider alternative drugs for treating pregnant women.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Not sure what to get your loved ones? Give a Skin Dimensions gift card! Surprise your loved ones with the choice of massages, facials, bareMinerals makeup, manicures, pedicures or let them choose products from a selection of over 25 national and international brands of skincare. Gift cards available in any denomination. Purchase at Skin Dimensions Day Spa, Skin Dimensions Boutique or online.

Unattended Child in Car

Have you ever left your child in the car while you ran into a store for a few minutes? Is that okay? Are there any laws preventing people from leaving their children alone in a vehicle?

On Black Friday, a Peoria, Illinois woman was arrested for leaving three children (6 years, 5 years and 6 months) in a car in the parking lot of Northwoods Mall. Police say they arrived on the scene after someone saw the kids sitting in the car for an extended period of time. Police waited 35 minutes before the mom came out of the mall. She was arrested and given a notice to appear in court. Two of the kids were foster children and were taken out of her home by the Department of Children and Family Services. Her child was sent home with her.

So is it ever okay to leave a young child in a car while you run into say McDonalds or Walgreens? I called Peoria Police today to find out. It turns out it is illegal in some instances. The Child Endangerment Act states the adult is presumed guilty if a child 6 years old or younger is left alone in a vehicle for more than 10 minutes. Police spokesman Doug Burgess says if an officer is called to a scene it is up to their discretion how to proceed. If they feel the child has been put in a dangerous situation (Ex: it's 100 degrees outside and a child is left in a vehicle for 5 minutes) they can arrest the parent/guardian. They are also likely to call the Department of Children and Family Services to report the incident. That can lead to home visits to make sure the parent/guardian is fit to care for the child.

I recently got this email from a reader:

I think many parents would be surprised about the law and what is considered legal/acceptable to leave a child unattended in a car. I was raised when it was fairly common to be left in a car as my mom ran into a business or did an errand. I still see moms leaving children in vehicles unattended, some for just a moment, sometimes longer. Sometimes a quick dash inside can take longer than anticipated. I don't believe any parent is intending to be negligent but they are exposing themselves to being charged with child negligence if the police are called by caring citizens.

Example: A friend of mine has a son who has ADHD, he had a bad day and she had been advised that when he was not "listening" that to give him a few minutes to settle down would help him, as opposed to being further stimulated. She needed to run into a store for a moment, so she gave him the option to come in or stay in the car. He requested to stay in the car. She could see the car from the store window and only left the window to check out. The person in front of her was having a problem at the register so she was out of sight from the car for five minutes. When she came out of the store, the police were pulling up. They asked if she had left her son in the car and when she explained the circumstances they told her she was going to have a visit from social services. Social services interviewed her, the school, his Dr., etc. She was charged with negligence because the law says a child should not be unattended until the age of fourteen, I believe. She received probation, parenting classes, a monthly visit from a social worker during the probation and her name on a registry for 7 years!

So I would think it is usually not a good idea to leave a child unattended in a car. With the winter months upon us, I would think more parents would leave them warm and snug in their car seats instead of dragging them in a store. However, it might not be the best plan.

Have you ever left a child unattended in a car?

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

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Don't Ignore the Symptoms

We have been talking about the importance of getting children with autism diagnosed early for the last five years. Developmental pediatricians determined years ago that starting therapy as early as possible is vital to kids with this disorder. Now a new study proves the kids with autism who start therapy at 18 months are better off than those who don't. The problem? A lot of parents don't know the symptoms or aren't ready to face the diagnosis. If you don't know the signs/symptoms of autism, take a look at this story I did several years ago. Early Intervention can make a world of difference.
FROM CNN: Researchers have shown for the first time that if a child is diagnosed with autism as early as 18 months of age, offering the toddler age-appropriate, effective therapy can lead to raised IQ levels and improved language skills and behavior.

"Early intervention can be very effective for toddlers with autism," says Geraldine Dawson, chief science officer of the advocacy group Autism Speaks, and one of the two lead authors of a study published Monday in the journal Pediatrics.

Since 2007, pediatricians have been told to screen 18-month-old children for autism. But what the next step is when such a young child is diagnosed has not been clear.
"It's crucial, if we're going to offer screening at such a young age, that we can offer an intervention, and now we know we have methods that are effective," says Dawson.

She adds, "This is the first controlled trial in children under the age of two-and-a-half."While Dawson was at the University of Washington, she and co-study author Sally Rogers from the University of California-Davis M.I.N.D. Institute devised the trial involving 48 children with autism.

All the children in the trial were between 1 1/2 and 2 1/2 years old at the beginning of the study. Half of the children were given community-based interventions or therapies and the other half were enrolled in a 20-hour per week intervention program called "Early Start Denver Model" (ESDM), developed by Rogers.

The goal of this research was to determine how much the debilitating effects of autism can be prevented or reduced.ESDM was designed to address the needs of toddlers with autism as young as 12 months old, and it is delivered by trained therapists and their parents in a very natural setting -- the child's own home -- with children sitting on the floor and playing, rather than having a more adult-directed therapy.

"It's a very pleasing kind of therapy, kids are happy. It is play, and it can happen everywhere," Rogers explains. Dawson adds that this type of intervention builds on a fun, positive relationship with the therapist. This is a contrast to traditional Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA), which is delivered at a desk, with the child sitting next to the teacher or therapist, who breaks down complex tasks into small components and then gives tangible reinforcements.

At the end of two years, all of the children showed improvements. But children in the ESDM group had increased their IQ by nearly 18 points -- 10 points higher than the children getting the standard autism therapy offered in the community. Scores for listening and understanding as well as motor skills and self-care skills were all higher in the ESDM group.

"Many of the children had virtually caught up to the typical kids their age," says Dawson.Rogers says parents can pick up the ESDM therapy methods quite easily."They can learn this within six hours of working with therapists," she says.

Then parents can use the skills in everyday settings, not just during specific therapy sessions.The study's authors also noted that the children in the ESDM group required only 15 hours of weekly intervention with a therapist, compared with the usual 40 recommended hours. This can have a significant economic impact on families. In 2006, a Harvard study estimated the lifelong cost of care for person with autism is more than $3 million.

Children with autism can have one of several complex neurological disorders, which lead to social impairments, communication difficulties and restrictive and repetitive behaviors. While the cause of autism in not yet known -- genetics and environmental triggers are believed to play a role -- the benefits of early intervention have been shown to reduce disruptive behaviors and teach the child skills that will lead to greater independence as he or she gets older.

There is no known cure for autism. The researchers of this study are quick to point out this they didn't cure any children, either. The subjects of the study still have autism, although it may be in a milder form.

In 2007, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended that all children be screened for autism at the ages of 18 months and 24 months. A report published in their journal, Pediatrics, that year said that several studies showed that the Denver model was an effective treatment, but that "controlled studies are lacking" to prove its efficacy. This new study does just that. Researchers and advocacy groups alike stress treatments need to be scientifically verified before they can be recommended on a large scale.

"This is a good-news story" says Dr. Fred Volkmar, director of Yale University's Child Study Center and an autism expert.

"Quite often the [autism] field is splintered," says Brenda Smith Myles, also an autism expert and spokeswoman for the Autism Society of America. "I think on this topic, you will see a lot of cohesiveness."

Volkmar says this is a "well-done study, an important study." He says it shows that by effectively intervening at this young age, it is possible to prevent some of the early problems autism causes.
Rogers acknowledges that this study is only the first step. "Every piece of science needs to be replicated before it becomes fact, so we are currently doing a replication study," she said.

For more information on how to recognizes autism, EDMS and other possible therapies, go to http://www.autismspeaks.org/ and http://www.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu/mindinstitute/.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

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Mother's Intuition

So I was staring at my baby's big blue eyes tonight as I read this story. Yes, they are the same color. Whew! I know people who have eyes who are two different colors. I assumed it was benign and kind of "cool." According to this story, the color change can be caused by cancer. Thankfully, the mother in this story caught the disease early and her baby daughter is expected to survive.

FROM ABC NEWS: When 32-year-old Megan Santos of Riverview, Fla., noticed that one of her baby daughter's eyes was a slightly different color than the other, her intuition told her that something was wrong.

Concerned, Santos posted a picture of 1-year-old Rowan Santos on the online pregnancy community BabyFit.com, of which she is a member. The picture clearly showed a hazy, white glow in Rowan's left eye -- an atypical reflection of the camera flash not seen in the infant's other eye.

She soon received a message from Madeleine Robb, another 32-year-old mother living in Stretford, the United Kingdom, encouraging her to ask her doctor about a rare but serious cancer that can bring about such a color difference. Santos followed Robb's advice. And as it turned out, Santos' post may have well saved her child's life.

"After I put the picture up, she saw it, and she sent me a private e-mail in which she said that Rowan might have retinoblastoma in her left eye," Santos said. "She said, 'Not to worry you, but I think you should look at this Web site.'"

The Web site detailed the condition known as retinoblastoma -- a potentially deadly form of childhood cancer that can affect one or both eyes. Immediately, Santos contacted her doctor. She saw him the next day, on the morning of Aug. 8, and he, in turn, referred her to ophthalmology and cancer specialists.

A battery of scans and other tests revealed that Rowan did, in fact, have a cancerous tumor growing on the retina of her left eye."Her prognosis is good, as far as the doctor can tell," Santos said. "[The cancer] had not yet reached her optic nerve, which would have then brought it directly to her brain."

But with the favorable prognosis for survival came devastating news."She is going to lose her eye," Santos said. "That's a definite." Doctors plan to treat the tumor by burning away the cancerous tissue with a laser. Rowan will undergo four rounds of chemotherapy, followed by surgery to remove her eye and the tumor, and then three more rounds of chemotherapy. The surgery to remove Rowan's left eye will be in November or December.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Are you having an Acne Emergency? Call Soderstrom Skin Institute at 674 – SKIN… we treat acne seriously. With over 35 years of experience, Soderstrom Skin Institute will provide a personalized program to help you get your acne under control. Untreated acne can result in permanent scarring. Don’t suffer any longer! Evening and weekend appointment are available and in most cases you’ll be seen within one week.