At 18 weeks pregnant, Brittany Walden learned she was going to be a “heart mom.” Her baby’s growing heart showed some abnormalities. After months of Brittany meeting with specialists and more scans, Emery Walden was born in October 2020 with a heart defect called hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) with pulmonary stenosis. HLHS is a…
Whenever guests of Norton Women’s & Children’s Hospital hear the smooth sounds of piano music filling the lobby, Reggie Watkins is likely behind the keys. “I get to share my gift and positively impact other people,” Reggie said. “You really feel like you did a good deed when people just look and smile with a…
Trey Adams is an active 11-year-old. He competes nationally in taekwondo and various styles of dance and practices one or the other pretty much every day. A little more than year ago, Trey started wetting the bed. When he went with his mother to his pediatrician to find out what was going on, a finger-prick…
As children head back to school, some families may encounter additional behavioral issues at school or in the home. Pediatricians are reminding parents that spanking is not an effective method of discipline. Spanking doesn’t work Spanking as a form of discipline is associated with poor health outcomes, such as mental health issues, substance abuse issues,…
Shopping for school supplies, completing back-to-school checkups and meeting new teachers are all part of the back-to-school excitement. But for many families, one of the biggest challenges is getting back into a regular bedtime routine. Summer break often means more relaxed bedtime and wake-up schedules. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine’s guidelines for the recommended…
When Nemr S. Eid, M.D., arrived in Louisville in 1988, he was the city’s only pediatric pulmonologist. For 10 years, he was on call around the clock, every day of the week, for children with asthma, cystic fibrosis or other lung conditions. His motto was “The patient remains first, always,” which meant his days started…
There is no cure for cystic fibrosis (CF), but breakthrough new drugs recently have been approved for children as young as 4 months, with more in the research stages that target the genetic mutations responsible for the disease. “This is a major development for our young cystic fibrosis patients,” said Ronald L. Morton, M.D., pulmonologist with Norton Children’s…
Methotrexate and vincristine are complex words for most, but 7-year-old Beckham Goodale knows them and can pronounce them just as well as any doctor. They’re words no child should know, but this is the reality of pediatric cancer. Methotrexate and vincristine are Beckham’s chemotherapy treatments. He’s been battling acute lymphoblastic leukemia since December 2020. In…
It’s not a matter of how much heart you have, but how much heart you give. That is true for Johnathan Young. He was born with half of a working heart. Johnathan, age 11, is the youngest of Greg and Jill Young’s three children. When Jill had her 20-week pregnancy ultrasound, the clinician noticed something…
Thirty-nine years ago, Diane Burnett, APRN, wasn’t sure she was cut out to care for kids with cancer and blood disorders. Give it a year, she figured. “I didn’t know if I would be a good fit for that,” Diane said. As it turned out, she was, and Diane’s job became a passion. One year…
With Kentucky still outpacing the nation in instances of child abuse, state officials and Norton Children’s announced $6 million from the Kentucky General Assembly aimed at reducing the number of child deaths and injuries related to abuse. An additional $2 million has been committed to the initiative by the Norton Children’s Hospital Foundation thanks to…
As child abuse rates in Kentucky remain higher than the national average, keeping children healthy and safe is every person’s priority. If you’re raising kids, are a caregiver for kids, or spend time around kids — make a plan on how to deal with challenging times that are bound to happen. Here’s what you can…