Category Archives: Pediatrics

A Measured Response to Longer Limbs

The pediatrician seems concerned that your child’s arms and legs seem longer than normal. Will he or she just grow up to be tall? A good pediatrician screens children for signs of syndromes that might not be apparent to parents. Particularly long limbs are possible indicators of at least two: Marfan syndrome and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. […]

By Hook or By Crook: Fixing “Student’s Elbow”

The technical name for “student’s elbow” is olecranon bursitis. The olecranon, the bony point of the elbow, is protected by a small sac of fluid called a bursa. Olecranon bursitis develops when an individual repeatedly leans on his or her elbow (as a student or draftsman might do when working at a desk) or when […]

Benign Bone Tumors in Children

Tumor: The word strikes fear in the heart of any parent, but there is a benign tumor that strikes children—most often boys between 10 to 20 years of age—called osteoid osteoma. Although painful, this tumor can sometimes be managed through physical therapy and pain medication, and should have no long-term effects on your child’s life. […]

Nursemaid’s Elbow: Avoid Swinging Your Child

Young children love it when you swing them by the arms. Unfortunately, this act and other seemingly harmless ones can lead to nursemaid’s elbow—a common injury where the elbow slips out of its joint. Often seen in children aged 1 to 4 years, this injury can also occur in babies. Young children are especially susceptible […]

How to Treat Nursemaid’s Elbow

You are walking hand-in-hand with your four-year-old when a skateboarder comes charging around the corner. You yank your child out of harm’s way, but she instantly howls in pain, clutches her arm and seems unable to bend it. She may have incurred “nursemaid’s elbow”, a dislocation of the joint commonly seen in children (more often […]

Perspectives for Patients – Baseball Pitching

Whether you are the pitcher, coach, or concerned parent, the health of the athlete’s throwing arm is very important. Each year nearly 6 out of 10 young pitchers hurt their elbows. These injuries can affect pitchers later in their lives; 15% of college-level pitchers say that troubles in their current performance are based on injuries […]

Batter Up! Prep Your Child for Baseball Season

After a winter of inactivity often occasioned by bad weather, the one- to two-month period before baseball season begins is a great time to get your child in better physical shape. Start with stretching, aerobic exercise and strength-training at least two or three days a week, working up to five days by the time the […]

Elbow Excellence Through Tommy John Surgery

One of the major advancements in sports medicine in the last 35 years, surgical repair of the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) is named for Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Tommy John, the first person to successfully undergo the procedure in 1974. John returned to the mound two years later . This procedure, invented and pioneered by […]

Team Sports: How Safe Are They?

The physical benefits of participating in sports are obvious in our increasingly obese society, but team sports also teach cooperation, responsibility to the team, mental preparedness and social development. What about the risk of injury? With the consequences of repeated concussions of football players as a hot topic in the news, it is reasonable to […]

Straightening the Curves of Scoliosis

Scoliosis is a condition in which the spine is curved toward either the right or left side. Thus, the upper back seems to be rounded, the lower back appears to curve inward (swayback), and one shoulder and/or hip looks higher than the other. About 80% of scoliosis cases occur in people 10 to 18 years […]