What’s a retractile testicle?
In my last blog, I mentioned that it takes 6 months for testicles to descend from the abdomen into the scrotum. If this process doesn’t occur properly, a baby will be born with an undescended testicle. (If the testicle can be felt in the inguinal canal, it’s referred...What’s a hydrocele?
When I see boys for routine physicals, I always check their testicles for lumps or swelling. The most common problem I find in the first year of life is something called a hydrocele. A hydrocele is a collection of fluid around the testicle. Hydroceles have an...Frequent urination in children
About twice a month, I see a child who has been urinating very frequently during the day. It usually occurs in children under the age of eight, and the pattern is remarkably similar. Rather suddenly, the child starts making frequent trips to the bathroom to pee. She...The problem with bubble baths
Children love to have fun during bath time. Whether it’s playing with bath toys, surrounding themselves with bubbles or just splashing around, kids enjoy having fun in the tub. However, bubble baths can cause side effects in girls. The opening to a girl’s...Extra foreskin in circumcised infants
A common finding in male infants is a circumcised penis that has some extra foreskin—it is most noticeable on the underside of the penis. When babies are circumcised, the person doing the procedure has to be careful not to remove too much foreskin. As a result,...Hernias and other problems in teenage boys
This blog post is really for adolescent males. If you are a parent, copy the information or send a link to your son. Concerned aunts, uncles and grandparents can do the same thing.On May 14th, I wrote a blog about testicular torsion. [Link:...A Modified Sitz Bath Helps With Mild Vaginal Irritation
A common symptom in preteen girls is pain with urination. Although it is important to consider a urinary tract infection (UTI) in this situation, the following conditions can cause painful urination because they irritate the tissues around a child’s urinary opening....Boys need to be examined standing up
Doctor’s visits can be unsettling for children so I usually examine infants and toddlers on the parent’s lap. However, once boys reach the age of three or four, it’s important to do the testicular examination while they are standing. Prior to adolescence, the main...Reuse Pull-Ups And Be Environmentally Conscious
Lots of kids continue to wet the bed at night even though they are successfully using the potty during the day. (Even at six years of age, 12% of kids wet the bed.) Most parents use Pull-Ups during this period of nighttime wetness to make the morning routine easier...Have You Ever Heard Of Testicular Torsion?
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...
- What’s a strawberry hemangioma?
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. - What are the incubation periods of some common childhood illnesses?
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. - What’s in a teaspoon?
Nowadays, doctors and parents need to be more precise in the way they give medicine to kids. - Are febrile seizures dangerous?
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. - It’s common for fathers to bond with their babies after mothers
I have made a point of telling new fathers that it’s “normal” for moms to bond to babies before they do. - Kids eating too many Halloween treats? Try this trick
Despite my confession, it used to drive me crazy to watch my kids gobble up pounds of candy every fall. My wife came up with a perfect solution to our dilemma. - Limit visitors the first week you are home with your baby
While it helps to have friends or relatives assist you in taking care of the baby, what begins as a 5-minute visit can easily stretch to an hour or more. - How to make tummy time easier
Once parents start tummy time, lots of questions come up. How long should it last? How many times a day should we do it? - How to clean a newborn’s vagina
Cleaning this area often makes parents nervous. I recommend two things to make this easier. - Why newborns poop when they’re nursing
When a person’s stomach fills with food, it triggers a reflex that stimulates peristalsis.