Adolescents, Dr. B's Blog
I often joke with parents that my gynecologic knowledge is limited because most female adolescent patients prefer seeing a woman doctor. However, my daughter suffered with severe cramps, and I learned the following tip from my partner, Promise Ahlstrom, MD. If your...
Adolescents, Dr. B's Blog
In my experience, 90% of girls are not excited when puberty starts. And it’s not just their impending period that’s on their mind. Most girls are happy with the body they have and see no reason for it to change. This uncertainty happens because the physical changes of...
Adolescents, Dr. B's Blog
While every parent hopes his or her teenager will be able to “just say no” when asked to use drugs or alcohol, it’s clear that many adolescents will have difficulty resisting peer pressure. One way to handle this situation is to give teenagers an excuse so it won’t...
Adolescents, Dr. B's Blog
It’s common knowledge that people are usually diagnosed with mononucleosis (mono) during adolescence. This is the reason it’s often referred to as the “kissing disease.” What lots of people don’t know, however, is that about 20 percent of children get mono before age...
Adolescents, Dr. B's Blog
Tetracycline and its derivatives (doxycycline, minocycline) are commonly used to treat acne. I have noticed that dermatologists sometimes forget to warn patients that a severe sore throat may occur if these medications dissolve in the esophagus. This can occur if the...
Adolescents, Conditions, Dr. B's Blog
Most parents know that certain symptoms that can be associated with serious medical conditions. The most common ones are as follows:stiff neck may mean meningitisabdominal pain may mean appendicitisbad cough may mean pneumoniaTesticular torsion is a rare condition...
One way to ease the pressure of communicating with loved ones is to choose a person from each side of the family to be your spokesperson.
Most pediatricians (me included) recommend weaning babies from formula at 12 months. I learned many years ago that this is also the ideal time to wean them from bottles.
Hand, foot, mouth syndrome (HFM) is a common viral infection most often seen in young children. It’s most common during… Read more: What is Hand, Foot, Mouth Syndrome?
Instilling drops in a child’s eyes can be difficult because they’re often afraid it will hurt when the drops go… Read more: How to Put Drops in a Child’s Eyes
Non-prescription medicine is not regulated by the FDA and doesn’t have to work to be sold in the US. The… Read more: Be careful when buying over the counter medication
Strawberry hemangiomas are a collection of tiny capillaries located on the skin. Most resolve without treatment by the time a child is 5 to 10 years.
There is a lag time between being exposed to an infection and coming down with the disease. This time frame is called the incubation period.
Nowadays, doctors and parents need to be more precise in the way they give medicine to kids.
Febrile seizures occur in 3 percent of children between 6 months and 5 years. The seizure is triggered by the rapid rise in temperature that accompanies an illness.
I have made a point of telling new fathers that it’s “normal” for moms to bond to babies before they do.