Orthopedics, Scoliosis, Spine

Scoliosis screening recommended for children ages 9-12

The typical scoliosis screening age starts about age 10, as the screening is most helpful during an adolescent’s growth spurt. If your health care provider detects a curve in the spine that needs treatment, a brace will often correct the condition at this age and can prevent the need for surgery later in life. Girls…

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Fractures and Injuries, Hand and Upper Extremities, Orthopedics, Sports Injuries

What is Little League elbow?

Spring is officially here — and that means young pitchers and catchers are reporting to baseball fields all across Louisville and Southern Indiana. Youth baseball is a fun and healthy spring and summer sport for boys and girls. But as youth sports get more competitive and kids specialize in a single sport or position at…

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Kentucky Poison Control Center, Norton Childrens Hospital, Prevention & Wellness

Poison control center: 65 years of preventing illness and death

The Kentucky Poison Control Center of Norton Children’s Hospital has been working to reduce illness and death from poisoning in Kentucky for 65 years. The center provides 24/7 free and confidential access to specially trained nurses, pharmacists and physicians. The nurses are nationally certified specialists in poison information, and the physicians are board certified in…

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Brain Tumor, Neurosciences, Spinal Tumor

What are brain tumor symptoms in kids?

Brain tumor symptoms in kids will depend on things such as the age of the child and the location of the tumor in the brain. The general symptoms in kids vary, but include: Behavior changes Blurry vision or crossed eyes Drowsiness and fatigue that’s unexplained, even coma Headache Poor balance Seizures Unexplained vomiting or nausea…

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Dermatology, Norton Childrens Medical Group

Is poison ivy contagious? How does it spread?

¿Es contagiosa la hiedra venenosa? ¿Cómo se propaga? Poison ivy isn’t contagious and the oil that causes the rash and blisters can be washed off the skin quickly while the reaction lasts for a few weeks. Pets can carry the oil from the plant’s sap in on their fur, but the oil typically doesn’t transfer…

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Norton Childrens Medical Group, Prevention & Wellness

Study shows adolescent girls at risk for intimate partner homicide

Nearly half of women who die by homicide in the U.S. are killed by a current or former intimate partner. Now a new study in JAMA Pediatrics shows that adolescent girls are at risk for this serious type of violence, intimate partner homicide (IPH). Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a serious issue that can lead…

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Cardiomyopathy, Heart, Syncope

My child fainted. Is it something to worry about?

Anytime a child or teenager faints, “passes out” or loses consciousness, family members — as well as the child or teen — often worry there might be something terribly wrong. The good news is that fainting or syncope (pronounced sin-koh-pee) in most older children and teenagers who are otherwise healthy does not automatically mean that…

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Prevention & Wellness

Safety City: Field trip destination celebrates 25 years

If you were a second-grader in Jefferson County after 1993, chances are you took a field trip to Safety City. For 25 years, nearly 150,000 second-grade students from private, public, parochial and home school programs in Metro Louisville have visited Safety City, a model city located behind Bates Elementary School on Bardstown Road in Fern…

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Child Abuse Prevention, Employee stories - Norton Childrens

From a pediatrician: Why you shouldn’t spank your child

I’m in Walmart, picking up art supplies for my kid’s school project, when I hear “the warning” in the next aisle. “You better knock it off, or you’re going to get a spanking.” The hair stands up on the back of my neck. I want to grab the glitter pens and get home, but I…

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Heart, Norton Childrens Hospital

How does the heart beat?

How does your heart beat? Your heart beats because of the actions of a highly specialized electrical system. It listens in to what’s going on with you at the time and triggers the muscular walls of the heart to contract in an organized fashion and at the right heart rate, either slow or fast, and…

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Employee stories - Norton Childrens, Fontan Procedure, Heart

Bahaaldin Alsoufi, M.D., brings congenital heart disease expertise to Louisville

Bahaaldin Alsoufi, M.D., says that the road to becoming a pediatric cardiothoracic surgeon is a long one. He started his journey at 16, when he first vowed to become a heart surgeon. After earning his medical degree in Syria, he spent 24 years training and building his career at universities and hospitals in the United…

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News, Prevention & Wellness

How to keep kids safe from driveway accidents

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, backover crashes cause approximately 210 deaths and 15,000 injuries each year. Driveway accidents, including backover and frontover incidents, are more common in warm weather, when children begin playing outside. Children under 5 are at the greatest risk, due to their small size, of likely being in a…

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