General

Children who participated in the bike train study averaged an additional 21 minutes of exercise per day and increased cycling to school by 45%.

The path to healthier living for children could be the same one they take to school.

Children who participated in adult-supervised group bicycle rides to and from school increased their moderate-to-vigorous physical activity by 21 minutes per day and daily cycling commutes by 45%, according to a pilot study recently published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

The additional exercise study participants gained from riding in the groups, known as bike trains, accounted for 35% of the 60 minutes of physical activity recommended daily for children.

“Regular physical activity can help build muscle and bone strength, raise energy levels, and help reduce the risk of conditions like obesity and heart disease,” said Seattle Children’s researcher Dr. Jason Mendoza, who served as the principal investigator for the study. Read full post »

Emmett Seymer taking steps toward a diagnosis

Life did not start out easily for Emmett Seymer. He and his twin brother, Dashiell, were born at 29 weeks in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Emmett spent the first 30 days of his life on a ventilator because his lungs were underdeveloped. Doctors at the hospital had little optimism for Emmett and told his mother to prepare herself for him to pass away.

After 180 days in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), Emmett was able to join his brother at home. Though he had significant difficulty breathing and an inability to swallow normally, he was finally stable enough to get out of the hospital.

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Daisie Losee

Daisie Losee had a rough introduction to the world. Her mother, Melissa, struggled to deliver her sixth child at an Idaho hospital. During the birth, Daisie suffered two injuries. Her broken right arm was discovered as they changed her clothes for the first time. Doctors tried to put a splint on her tiny bone, but the break between the shoulder and elbow was in such a small area that it was difficult to keep stable. The doctors had to improvise and make a sling that held her fist against her sternum to let the bone heal.

The second injury, brachial plexus, was more mysterious.  Neither Cory nor Melissa Losee had heard of that condition. For the first month after Daisie’s birth, she had no movement in her left arm and hand. The Losees saw five different doctors at the hospital in the first seven days of Daisie’s life. None of them talked about the injury to the left arm and the Losees were unsure what was happening with their newborn daughter.

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Independence Day is soon, and families are busy planning for fun that may include celebrating with fireworks, a day at the beach or a barbecue. Dr. Tony Woodward, medical director of emergency medicine at Seattle Children’s Hospital, urges families to choose safe options for a fun holiday. Read full post »

Hamilton McNamee enjoys a snack.

From his appearance alone, 3-year-old Hamilton McNamee looks like a typical kid. He is rambunctious and playful with strawberry blonde hair and a mischievous smile.

As he climbs on the tables and chairs in Starbucks at Seattle Children’s Hospital, his mother Claire casually states, “He’s going to wander around a little. It’s fine.”

What’s different about Hammie, as his family affectionately refers to him, is that he has a condition known as tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC), a rare genetic disease that causes tumors to grow in various parts of the body, including the brain and other vital organs. Though the tumors are benign (which means they aren’t cancerous), they impact a child’s development in a variety of ways depending on where they grow and how big they get.

At age 2, Hammie experienced some seizure-like behavior after a bout with hand, foot and mouth disease. His primary care provider referred Hammie to Seattle Children’s First Seizure Clinic where tests revealed that he had growths in his brain and he was diagnosed with TSC.

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The Pintuff family

When Aidan Pintuff was 4 years-old, he awoke to find the right side of his jaw swollen, red and very sore. Living in Virginia at the time, Aidan’s parents took him to the emergency room where he was given antibiotics. The swelling and pain went away and the family moved on, but they had no definitive answer on what caused the condition.

As Aidan grew up, symptoms would flare up from time to time, particularly if he was hit in the face. Their local doctor had initially diagnosed him with cellulitis. Aidan continued to live his life as a young boy, doing all the things that an active child would do like wrestle with his brother, play sports and participate in the boy scouts.

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Jay waits for his appointment at Seattle Children’s Gender Clinic

Sitting unassumingly on the exam table, Jay’s feet dangle above the floor and his hands are folded in his lap. He displays a warm smile when asked how he’s doing. His mother, Cynthia, looks at her son with an overt sense of pride and the type of love that needs no words to express its presence.

Jay is awaiting the arrival of the Gender Clinic care team and as his appointment draws near, he talks about what life is like as a 10th grader in the Seattle area and his hopes for his future. As his father and brother before him, Jay wants to go into the armed services. His particular branch of interest is the Air Force and he wants to go through officer training at West Point.

Assigned female at birth, Jay also talks about his desire to fully transition to the male gender that he has identified with since he was a baby and the challenges that it presents, especially at his young age.

Cynthia, a cancer survivor herself, knows all about taking on challenges. Her experience as a patient taught her about the medical system.

“I know how important it is to be your own advocate,” she said. “I am so proud of Jay for his bravery in being his own advocate and taking control of his own medical decisions.”

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Alexis, a 7 year-old vascular anomalies patient from Indiana

By the time Alexis Stringer was 7 years-old, she had already undergone a lifetime’s worth of medical procedures; 47 of them to be precise.

Alexis was born with purple areas on her face and neck. At first, doctors thought it was due to birth trauma. But over time, when Alexis was 7 weeks old, doctors determined she instead had a series of blood and lymph vessels that were not developing properly, which are known as vascular anomalies.

The traditional treatment for this disfiguring condition meant that Alexis underwent a procedure called sclerotherapy where chemicals are repeatedly injected into the veins to make them shrink. The procedure can be painful and has to be performed several times under general anesthesia. In addition to the risks associated with repeated anesthesia, sclerotherapy came with additional risks as the high dose of the substance injected has the potential to destroy healthy tissue and even stop one’s heart.

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With increasing frequency, stories of opioid overdoses are making headlines, with tragedies striking people from all walks of life. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention declares that the United States is in the midst of an opioid overdose epidemic, and says that every day, over 1,000 people are treated in emergency departments for misusing prescription opioids.

Amid the growing epidemic of opioid abuse among adults, parents are increasingly showing concern when their teens are prescribed opioids after procedures such as wisdom tooth removal or surgery for a sports injury. Dr. Gary Walco, director of Pain Medicine at Seattle Children’s, helps parents and teens understand the important role that opioids can play in managing pain, and also teaches healthcare providers in training about the importance of safe prescribing practices. Read full post »

Seattle Children’s recently became the nation’s first hospital campus to earn Salmon-Safe certification. The planning and work from staff like groundskeeper Meghan Fuller aims to reduce the campus’s impact on the surrounding land and aquatic plant and animal life.

Seattle Children’s philosophy on sustainability is centered around its mission to help every child live the healthiest and most fulfilling life possible.

“When we do good things for the planet, we help take care of our patients and all children,” said Colleen Groll, Seattle Children’s manager of sustainability programs. “Children are one of the most affected populations by climate change and pollution, so it’s really important that we are a leader in reducing our impact on the environment.”

That organizational mindset and Seattle Children’s longstanding commitment to the environment recently inspired it to achieve certification as the nation’s first Salmon-Safe hospital campus. The distinction is attained by meeting peer-reviewed criteria and performance standards that demonstrate environmental stewardship in areas that directly impact the urban watershed. This includes minimizing impacts of development on sensitive aquatic and land resources; and protecting downstream water quality through landscape management practices, habitat restoration and facility performance—like waste reduction and responsible water use.

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