pediatrics

Medical startup Efferon is working to eliminate pediatric sepsis, a life-threatening immune response to infection that remains a leading cause of child deaths worldwide. The company says its approach targets the devastating toll the condition takes on young patients. Details of its technology and funding have drawn attention in health and startup circles.

Akron Children's Hospital is taking part in a global suicide prevention program, according to the Akron Beacon Journal. The hospital's involvement links its pediatric mental health services with an international effort to reduce youth suicide, and the report outlines what participation could mean for local families and care.

The American Academy of Pediatrics is calling for a nationwide ban on the sale and distribution of raw, unpasteurized milk. The group cites the drink's growing popularity and the health risks it poses, particularly to children, who face higher chances of severe illness from bacteria like E. coli and salmonella. Health officials have long warned against unpasteurized dairy, but demand has risen in recent years.

The American Academy of Pediatrics is pushing for a nationwide ban on the sale and distribution of raw, unpasteurized milk. The group, the largest professional organization of pediatricians in the United States, cites the growing popularity of raw dairy products and the health risks they pose, particularly the potential harm to children who consume them. The renewed call comes as raw milk has gained traction in some consumer circles despite long-standing safety warnings.

Scientists are promoting exposome science — the mapping of the total accumulated environmental exposures a child experiences, from air pollution and chemicals to diet and social conditions — as a way to rewrite pediatric health research. Rather than studying single risk factors in isolation, researchers say tracking the full range of exposures over childhood could reveal the cumulative roots of chronic disease and guide earlier interventions. The approach is gaining attention as a new framework in children's medicine.

A randomized non-inferiority trial examined whether a shortened application of a eutectic mixture of lidocaine and prilocaine, combined with skin cooling, can reduce pain during pediatric vaccinations. The study, published by Baishideng Publishing Group, suggests the combined approach may offer a practical alternative to standard longer numbing-cream protocols. Findings could influence how clinicians manage injection pain in children, where ease of use and shorter waiting times before vaccination matter for busy clinics and families.

A survey has found that most laboratories testing children for cardiac troponin do not use pediatric reference ranges, meaning results in children may be interpreted against adult standards. Cardiac troponin is a key marker for heart injury, and the finding raises concerns about misdiagnosis or missed cardiac problems in young patients. Researchers are urging labs to adopt age-specific reference values.

Neurology news roundup: seven cerebral palsy drug candidates are flagged as ones to watch, a gluten-free diet is reported to improve cognition and quality of life in Parkinson's disease, and new real-world data covers treatment transitions to nipocalimab in generalized myasthenia gravis. The items span pediatrics, nutrition, and antibody-based therapy for autoimmune neuromuscular disease.