Strollerderby : sick

Swine Flu - Maybe We Won't Close School

Brett Singer — Tue, 05 May 2009 02:20:00 GMT

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, specifically acting director Richard Besser, may change their minds about recommending school closings wth regard to the virus formerly known as swine flu, now known as H1N1 influenza. (Anyone else look at "H1N1" and think it should be pronounced "heinie"? Anyone? Bueller?)

Anyway, here's an awkwardly worded sentence from the Wall Street Journal: "Federal health officials are considering new revising guidelines on school closures as evidence mounts that the current H1N1 influenza outbreak is acting like the seasonal flu."

The current recommendation is that any school where a student was found to have the H1N1 virus should close for 14 days. That recommendation may change, perhaps to the method used in Seattle, "where parents are being urged to keep sick children home for seven days and having teachers and school administrators be on the look out for sick children to be sent home." (Shouldn't teachers and school administrators be on the lookout for sick kids anyway? Like, if someone is vomiting in the halls, that means they should go home. Right? Hello? Anybody there?)

To me, closing school for 14 days seems like overkill. On the other hand, if we think the CDC had a good reason to make that recommendation, why are they suddenly backing down? Perhaps because closing a school for 2 weeks would be unbelievably annoying?

As much as I admit to being concerned about this virus (or any public health scare, for that matter), I also agree that closing school for that long would be totally irritating. Still, I have to wonder how the CDC can go back and forth like this. If closing school is necessary, go for it. If not, let's not. Is it that hard to decide? Or does our 24 hour newscycle, "I need to know NOW" culture causing them to make decisions too quickly?

Bottom line: the recommendation may or may not change. Thanks. Good to know.

Check out Babble's Swine Flu Guide here.

Image: Obsessable

Source: Wall Street Journal

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Swine Flu - Are You Worried About Your Kids?

Brett Singer — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 16:30:00 GMT

I'm a bit of a hypochondriac. It's not a debilitating thing, but I do have a bit of the "hangnail = brain tumor" thing going on. (A comedienne whose name I can't recall had a line somewhat like this, and apparently it's also on an episode of ER. But I digress.)

So when I heard about the swine flu that is sweeping the nation (you can track which parts using this handy map) I admit that I became slightly more paranoid about any coughing and sniffling that my guys were doing.

You want to be careful, but you also want to be sane. A runny nose without a fever is not, to the best of my knowledge, swine flu. On the other hand, swine flu looks quite a bit like regular flu. According to Bloomberg News, "Influenza normally causes symptoms such as coughing, sneezing, headaches and body aches, fever, chills, and sometimes vomiting and diarrhea. Swine flu causes the same symptoms, and may be difficult to distinguish from other strains of flu and respiratory illnesses." Fun.

So what do you do? Flip out at every sniffle? Call the doctor at every cough?

The answer is that you shouldn't do that, of course. Hysteria helps no one. (Maybe it helps the makers of Xanax.) On the other hand, is it really paranoia if the illness is real? Being more careful than usual isn't a bad thing, right?

Are you concerned about your kids catching swine flu? Or am I being silly?

Check out Babble's Swine Flu Guide here.

Image: Obsessable

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5-Year-Old Twins with Alzheimer's

Cole Gamble — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 17:00:00 GMT

Addison and Cassidy Hempel, both 5, hardly ever possess the ability to walk, talk and eat. A rare disease they both share causes their bodies to build up cholesterol, leading to debilitating physical and neurological problems. The two girls must resort to wearing diapers and lost the ability to speak months ago. There is no known cure for this disease, officially know as National Niemann-Pick Disease but referred to by doctors as Childhood Alzheimer’s. Most children with the disease die before their 20^th birthday.

However; there may be hope in the experimental use of a drug called cyclodextrin. Cyclodextrin, an additive in cholesterol-free foods that studies show also might help combat the HIV virus, has not yet procured approval from the FDA for use in the treatment of Childhood’s Alzheimer’s. The Hempels now receive the treatment after their parents and doctor petitioned for the FDA’s “compassionate use” program. The program allows patients with life-threatening illness to use as-of-yet unapproved treatments if said patients find no other medicinal options available.

Should the treatment prove successful, the Hempels may blaze the way for cyclodextrin’s use in other children afflicted by this bizarre disease.

Photo: Chris Hempel

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Obama's Grandmother May Not See Election Day

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 16:03:00 GMT

In an interview that aired on Good Morning America this morning, Barack Obama told ABC that he’s had to accept that his grandmother may not make it to Election Day. He has suspended his campaign due to her illness, and is currently in Honolulu at her bedside.

85-year-old Madelyn Dunham helped raise Obama, and was a powerhouse in her own right. Obama was grateful for the chance to sit down and talk with Dunham, who is still alert. He was unable to have a last talk with his mother before she died of ovarian cancer at the age of 53, and he didn’t want to repeat that mistake.

Obama said his grandmother has received flowers, phone calls, and emails from strangers all over the country. "And so maybe she is getting a sense of long-deserved recognition towards the end of her life," he said.

Photo: USA Today

They Say: More Children Have Allergies

Brett Singer — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 22:30:00 GMT

If you thought it only seemed like every other kid had allergies, it turns out that they do. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "About 3 million U.S. children have a food or digestive allergy -- an 18 percent increase over the past 10 years." The CDC also says that slightly more girls (4.1 percent) than boys (3.8 percent) have some sort of allergy.

What I wonder is how common food allergies are outside of the United States. As Chris Rock said, "We got so much food in America we're allergic to food. Allergic to food! Hungry people ain't allergic to sh*t. You think anyone in Rwanda's got a f**king lactose intolerance?!" Obviously someone in a less developed country could have an undiagnosed allergy, but it's an interesting question.

The article also doesn't say what they think the cause of this allergic increase is, or offer a theory as to whether or not these allergies were always there and just went undetected. (It does, however, mean that when that mother leaps across the table at you during a birthday party and screams, "BUT MY CHILD IS ALLERGIC!" she's probably telling the truth. But it's still OK for you to wish she'd just tell you calmly.) There's also some good news: "Most children outgrow" their allergies to food, they say.

Frankly, I wish I were allergic to Autumn Mix candy corns. That would make it a hell of a lot easier to stop eating them. Maybe.

Source: Reuters

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FEMA Trailers Making Children Very Sick

Cole Gamble — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 18:31:00 GMT

Tens of thousands of children may face a lifetime of health problems due to living in FEMA trailers in the aftermath of hurricane Katrina. Formaldehyde, a cancer-causing substance, has been found in FEMA trailers at levels five times what is considered safe.

Months after Katrina I remember commentators saying the effects of that storm and the aftermath would reverberate for decades. It was kind of hard to wrap your head around, but here we are and there are children who may have lifetimes of medical problems. It's often been said that the real damage of Katrina was not done by the storm, but by our own government's lack of action. Three years later and the same crap is still going on. Well, at least our government is consistent. Seriously, can anyone name one thing they've done right in the last eight years?

Now if you'll excuse me, I must go punch a wall.

Photo: AP

Mom Gets Fifteen Years For Unnecessary Surgeries on Son

Kelly Mills — Fri, 02 May 2008 22:34:00 GMT

From the department of "Eeeeesh!" comes this story: Two of Laurie Williamson's children were in wheelchairs and had feeding tubes. Her three kids altogether had at least 500 doctor's appointments in ten years in connection with a rare illness. And Williamson raised $150,000 between 2000 and 2005 from individuals and organizations for her kids' health issues.

One problem with this scenario: Prosecutors say she fabricated the illnesses to get the money. And she was convicted of child abuse and sentenced to 15 years for putting her son through two unnecessary surguries, for a nerve-stimulation device and a gastric feeding-button. The children were malnourished when they were taken into protective custody. She also told the kids they had a rare condition and would not survive past their teens. However, it's more likely she herself has a somewhat rare condition: Munchausen syndrome by proxy, where a person makes up or induces symptoms in another to get attention. And in this case, $150,000.

The kids are now with a relative, and their mom is not allowed contact.

Weekly Check-Up: Your Stress Makes Your Kid Sick

Kelly Mills — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 18:32:00 GMT

Feeling anxious and depressed? Well, now you have one more thing to angst about, because a new study suggests parental emotional stress can make kids more vulnerable to illness. Like it is enough that stress makes you more likely to get sick, now your children have to be felled by the latest bug as well. I totally knew that stomach flu my kid got was my fault, I just hadn't figured out how I caused it yet.

Researchers based the finding on both reports from parents on instances of their children's sniffles and fevers and so on, and on measurements of immune cells in kids. The scientists admit that parental reports might be slightly skewed, but say the study still suggests a link. However, one stress and health researcher says parents shouldn't get too upset just yet, and that more longterm studies are needed because it's possible there aren't lasting effects. "I believe that children are highly resilient, and their systems are sufficiently robust to cope with this. Although it is a good study, parents should not let it worry them unduly." Especially because if you get anxious about it, your kid might get sick. Heh heh, catch 22.

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