Narcolepsy is my sleepy superpower
My talent is almost more like a superpower. I have the ability to fall asleep wherever and whenever. Now I know you’re probably thinking all teenagers have this power, but trust me, I’m a little different. At any time or place, I have the ability to take a nap. Intrigued by my power, experts and doctors conducted multiple tests and studies on me. When the results came back, it was clear I wasn’t normal. One doctor even admitted, “These are numbers I’ve never seen before.” Developing my superpower I first began developing my sleepy superpower in the fall of my junior year after transferring to Middlesex School. ...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - March 22, 2017 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Jake Shusterman Tags: Our Patients’ Stories Dr. Kiran Maski Narcolepsy Sleep Center Source Type: news

Fighting for Kennedy: Coping with moyamoya disease
If you happen to be waiting in line at the supermarket with Kennedy Grace Cheshire, you’ll likely leave the store with a whole new group of friends. This outgoing five-year-old can’t resist introducing herself to her fellow shoppers — and then introducing them to each other. “She’s never met a stranger,” says her mother, Amber. Kennedy, who lives in Texas, brought that playful attitude to the East Coast last year when she and her family arrived at Boston Children’s Hospital for evaluation and treatment. At age two, she had been diagnosed with neurofibromatosis 1 (NF1), a genetic condition that causes symptoms...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - March 21, 2017 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Jessica Cerretani Tags: Diseases & Conditions Our Patients’ Stories Dr. Edward Smith moyamoya Moyamoya Disease Program Source Type: news

Dealing with nosebleeds in children
Though they’re not usually a serious medical concern, nosebleeds in children can be frightening and socially disabling. Nosebleeds at school, friends’ houses or birthday parties can be quite disruptive, as many people are scared of blood and often nobody really knows what to do about it. What causes nosebleeds?  Almost all nosebleeds are caused by a drying of the nasal mucosa. The inside of our noses is lined by mucosa — the same moist tissue that lines our mouth — and just like in our mouths, constant airflow around that mucosa can dry and irritate it. Considering the fact that we breathe through our nose all day...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - March 16, 2017 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Dr. David Roberson Tags: Kids' Safety Parenting David Roberson General Pediatric Otolaryngology Program nosebleeds in children Sports & exercise Source Type: news

Paying it 26.2 miles forward
There is a spot on the Boston Marathon route called “The Liver Mile.” It’s where the grind begins, where the storied course starts to tests runners and where legs often weary from pounding 16.8 miles of punishing roads. Yet, it’s also where 21-year-old Tom Williams, a liver transplant recipient from Dracut, Massachusetts, first fell in love with the idea of running the Boston Marathon. “I wasn’t thinking about the difficulty of it,” he says. “I was just thinking, I want to run for other people who are sick.” Located in front of Newton-Wellesley Hospital, “The Liver Mile” is where volunteers hand ...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - March 15, 2017 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Emily Williams Tags: Diseases & Conditions Our Patients’ Stories Boston Marathon Dr. Heung-Bae Kim Dr. Khashavar Vakili Liver transplant Liver Transplant Program Pediatric Transplant Center (PTC) primary sclerosing cholangitis Source Type: news

Second opinion for midaortic syndrome gives Cameron a second chance
Cameron Grubb likes to shoot Nerf guns, and even his own doctors aren’t immune from his aim — in fact, they often fire back. It’s a playful act that everyone welcomes, however, particularly since this 6-year-old has defied the odds multiple times in his young life. Just three years ago, Cameron was struggling to survive after being diagnosed with extremely high blood pressure — so elevated, in fact, that his clinicians in Kansas thought the monitor must be broken. When they eventually confirmed the reading, it was 170/140, a dangerous level that sent him to the local intensive care unit for nine days. It wasn’t u...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - March 14, 2017 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Jessica Cerretani Tags: Diseases & Conditions Our Patients’ Stories Dr. Heung-Bae Kim Dr. Khashavar Vakili Dr. Michael Ferguson midaortic syndrome Midaortic Syndrome and Renovascular Hypertension (MAS/RVH) Program TESLA Source Type: news

Five things you might not know about epilepsy
The classic image of epilepsy is of someone falling to the ground and shaking uncontrollably — but that stereotype isn’t always accurate, particularly in kids. Children are usually diagnosed after two or more unprovoked seizures, or after a single seizure if there’s a high chance of further ones. Yet this isn’t a one-size-fits-all condition, and seizure activity can change over time as young brains develop. We asked Dr. Phillip Pearl, director of the Epilepsy Center at Boston Children’s Hospital to share some more surprising facts about this condition. Childhood epilepsy is on the rise. Epilepsy isn’t just fo...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - March 9, 2017 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Jessica Cerretani Tags: Diseases & Conditions Dr. Phillip Pearl epilepsy epilepsy center seizures Source Type: news

ABCs of DDH: What moms and dads need to know
A family’s journey with developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH) typically starts when a baby’s pediatrician hears a click in her hips. The next steps often include an ultrasound and a follow-up with an orthopedic surgeon, perhaps a pediatric hip specialist. College friends Tosha LoSurdo and Jessica Rohrick recently re-connected after their babies were both diagnosed with and treated for DDH at the Boston Children’s Hospital Child and Young Adult Hip Preservation Program. Tosha’s daughter, Carmela, and Jessica’s daughter, Phallon, were treated with a Pavlik harness and are on a regular fo...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - March 8, 2017 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Lisa Fratt Tags: Parenting Child and Young Adult Hip Preservation Program DDH Dr. Eduardo Novais Dr. Travis Matheney hip dysplasia Pavlik harness Source Type: news

Ask the Mediatrician: Is it OK for my baby to video chat with his grandparents?
I’d like to video chat with my 3-month-old grandson on my phone. His parents are concerned that the video emitted from the screen will affect his brain development and eyes. Any advice will be helpful! ~ Nana, New York, NY Dear Nana, This is a great question and one many of today’s parents face when thinking about sharing their children’s lives with faraway friends and relatives. Here are five things you may not know about video chatting and young children. A smartphone is OK — a laptop or desktop is even better. Today’s flat screens do not emit any radiation other than light. Smartphones do emit some electro...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - March 7, 2017 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Michael Rich MD MPH Tags: Ask the Expert Parenting Ask the Mediatrician screen time Source Type: news

First a birthmark, then a rare disease diagnosis
Brielle plays near her home in Rhode Island. Two-year-old Brielle Coutu loves listening to music, dancing and eating enough cheese that her mother, Heather, often wonders aloud, “Are you a mouse?” Brielle loves to play outside and is usually a chatty, happy-go-lucky little girl. But, sometimes, she can be overwhelmed by the excitement of gathering with family and friends. “We think she has some sensory sensitivities related to her Sturge-Weber syndrome,” says Heather. Brielle was born with what’s known as a port-wine birthmark on her face. It is aptly named for its dark reddish color. Port-wine birthmarks can ...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - March 1, 2017 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Kat J. McAlpine Tags: Diseases & Conditions Our Patients’ Stories Dr. Anna Pinto epilepsy neurology rare disease seizures Sturge-Weber syndrome Sturge-Weber Syndrome Clinic Source Type: news

Grabbing the reins her own way
Chloe Neff, a rodeo rider with brachial plexus birth palsy, will compete in barrel racing world championships.  Barrel racing isn’t for the faint-hearted, that’s for sure. In this rodeo event, horses and riders whip around barrels at lightning speeds. Tails flourish in the air and muscles ripple. Powerful horses are coaxed by their riders to spin around each barrel as quickly as possible. One such duo, 16-year-old Chloe Neff and her horse, Raise a Glass Dancer, will soon be on their way to barrel racing’s world championships. “If you keep trying and working at it, you can do anything you want to,” says Chloe. He...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - February 28, 2017 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Katherine McAlpine Tags: Diseases & Conditions Our Patients’ Stories athletes brachial plexus Dr. Peter Waters nerve injury orthopedics physical therapy rehabilitation Source Type: news

Experience Journal: Coping with a child ’s congenital heart disease
At 16 months old, Avery was diagnosed with an atrial septal defect — a hole in the wall between the heart’s upper chambers that required open-heart surgery to repair. ​ Shock, fear and pride were just a few of the emotions Avery’s parents Jessica and Andrew experienced throughout their journey coping with their daughter’s congenital heart defect (CHD). The couple found it helpful to talk through their questions and feelings with other parents of children with a CHD, as well as with Avery’s caregivers from the Heart Center at Boston Children’s Hospital. Now with two years of recovery behind th...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - February 27, 2017 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Jenny Fernandez Tags: Diseases & Conditions Our Patients’ Stories atrial septal defect Dr. Pedro del Nido Experience Journal Heart Center Source Type: news

Four things you might not know about fever
Of everything we pediatricians get called about, I think that fever is the most common. Which isn’t surprising, given that fever can be a sign of illness. But despite the fact that it is so common, fever is often misunderstood — and often frightens people more than it should. Here are four things all parents should know about fever. Fever is a symptom, not a problem. We doctors are always going to be more concerned with what is causing the fever than with the fever itself. We are going to ask a whole lot of questions about other symptoms, like pain, cough, vomiting or rash. If the answers to those questions (and what w...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - February 23, 2017 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Claire McCarthy Tags: Ask the Expert Health & Wellness Claire McCarthy MD fever Source Type: news

On the move: Lilith ’s dramatic recovery from arteriovenous fistula
It began like any typical late summer day. Lilith Borden and her mom, Victoria, had stopped by a farm near their Concord, New Hampshire, home where the 3-year-old could enjoy an ice cream cone — and burn off some energy playing in a nearby field. “We were running through the grass, when Lilith suddenly grabbed the back of her neck and screamed that she had a boo-boo,” Victoria remembers. Within seconds, she seemed to have trouble moving. As Victoria called for help, the little girl collapsed to the ground. At first, the cause of Lilith’s emergency seemed apparent. A small red mark on her neck, combined with a near...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - February 22, 2017 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Jessica Cerretani Tags: Diseases & Conditions Our Patients’ Stories arteriovenous fistula AVF Cerebrovascular Surgery and Interventions Center Dr. Darren Orbach endovascular embolization Source Type: news

Looking back and ahead: The heart that made history
In the early morning of Sept. 11, 2001, Jennifer Miller was preparing to make history. She lay in pre-op, ready for the Boston Children’s Hospital Fetal Cardiology team to perform the world’s first fetal cardiac intervention on her unborn son. Two weeks earlier, at her 18-week screening ultrasound, Jennifer and her husband Henry were told their son would be born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS), a life-threatening heart defect where the left ventricle is small and underdeveloped. If born with HLHS, their son would immediately undergo multiple open-heart surgeries to repair his heart and, later, may need a h...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - February 21, 2017 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Jenny Fernandez Tags: Our Patients’ Stories Dr. Audrey Marshall Dr. James Lock Dr. Wayne Tworetsky Fetal Cardiac Imaging Fetal Cardiology Program fetal surgery Heart Center hypoplastic left heart syndrome Source Type: news

Sledding, ice skating and more: Top tips for winter sports safety
Winter school vacation week is officially here. If you aren’t traveling to a warmer climate, outdoor winter activities — sledding, skiing, snowboarding and more, are likely part of your family’s vacation plans. Dr. Michael O’Brien, director of Boston Children’s Hospital Sports Concussion Clinic, says when it comes to winter sports, fun and exercise outweigh the risk. But you do need to be careful. So what is a parent to do? Sledding safety In Boston, we’ve seen a lot of snow over the past week, so sledding may be a great option. Helmets are recommended for any winter sport, says O’Brien. Snowboa...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - February 17, 2017 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Kat Powers Tags: Kids' Safety Dr. Michael O'brien Orthopedic Urgent Care Clinic Sports Concussion Clinic Sports Medicine Division Source Type: news