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Marijuana use may not be quite as risk-free as previously believed—especially for teens. Cindy Gellner, MD, explains recent research into the rise in teen marijuana use. Learn more about its…
Date Recorded
December 11, 2023 Health Topics (The Scope Radio)
Kids Health MetaDescription
Uncover the hidden risks of teen marijuana use with insights from Cindy Gellner, MD. Learn about its link to temporary psychosis, heightened schizophrenia risk, and cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome.
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Is regular exercise the key to managing ADHD, anxiety, and depression in children? Pediatrician Cindy Gellner, MD, examines recent evidence that shows how increased physical activity can…
Date Recorded
November 27, 2023 Health Topics (The Scope Radio)
Kids Health
Mental Health
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Fentanyl overdoses in teens are rising sharply. Pediatrician Cindy Gellner, MD, explores some of the reasons behind this increase and advocates for a proactive approach to curb it. Learn the…
Date Recorded
October 16, 2023 Health Topics (The Scope Radio)
Kids Health
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In an age when social media heavily influences youth, many teens are quick to label themselves with mental health conditions they see trending online. Pediatrian Cindy Gellner, MD, highlights the…
Date Recorded
October 02, 2023 Health Topics (The Scope Radio)
Kids Health MetaDescription
Understanding mental health in the social media age: Learn the importance of expert diagnosis amidst rising self-labeling trends among teens and the risks of online self-diagnosis.
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If your child complains of stomach aches, headaches, and other vague symptoms that seem to increase the night before or morning of a school day, your child may be dealing with school phobia. As the…
Date Recorded
August 14, 2023 Health Topics (The Scope Radio)
Kids Health MetaDescription
Is your child showing signs of school phobia with recurring symptoms on school days? Equip yourself with techniques to address their fears and recognize when expert intervention for severe anxiety is needed.
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Adults need fiber in their diets to help prevent certain illnesses such as diabetes and heart disease. But what about children? While fruits and vegetables are great fiber sources, there are also…
Date Recorded
July 24, 2023
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With U.S. rates of teen suicide and suicidal ideation on the rise, how should parents respond when their teenager loses a friend or acquaintance to suicide? Pediatrician Cindy Gellner, MD, provides…
Date Recorded
July 03, 2023 Health Topics (The Scope Radio)
Kids Health
Mental Health
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Is it normal childhood behavior or could it be ADHD? Pediatrician Cindy Gellner, MD, delves into why ADHD diagnosis often goes beyond the scope of a pediatrician's role in a traditional…
Date Recorded
June 12, 2023 Health Topics (The Scope Radio)
Kids Health
Mental Health
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What do you need to know about pediatric OB care and how doctors can address gynecological issues in children? Pediatrician Cindy Gellner, MD, clarifies common misconceptions and sheds light on the…
Date Recorded
May 04, 2023 Health Topics (The Scope Radio)
Kids Health MetaDescription
What do you need to know about pediatric OB care and how doctors can address gynecological issues in children? Understand the common misconceptions and sheds light on the scope and limitations of general pediatricians. Learn about the types of gynecological issues that pediatricians can manage and when it's necessary to consult a pediatric gynecologist for specialized care.
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Facing challenges with your child's behavior? Pediatrician Cindy Gellner, MD, provides expert guidance on how to differentiate between normal childhood misbehavior and genuine behavioral…
Date Recorded
April 27, 2023 MetaDescription
Facing challenges with your child's behavior? Listen to expert guidance on how to differentiate between normal childhood misbehavior and genuine behavioral concerns. Learn when to seek professional help from a mental health specialist and when the issue may actually be a result of parenting approaches. Equip yourself with the knowledge to better understand and support your child's emotional well-being.
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Are your daughter's periods causing her pain? It's essential for parents to understand what's normal and what's not when it comes to menstrual pain in young girls. Pediatrician…
Date Recorded
April 20, 2023
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There are around 6,000 pediatric ER visits for button battery ingestion every year in the United States. If you even suspect your child may have swallowed a button battery, take them to the emergency…
Date Recorded
April 06, 2023
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Is your young daughter complaining about painful urination when using the bathroom? It could be more than a urinary tract infection. Girl parts can be very sensitive, especially between the ages of…
Date Recorded
December 12, 2022 Health Topics (The Scope Radio)
Kids Health Transcription
So your daughter comes to you and says, "It hurts to pee." Is it automatically a urinary tract infection? Not so fast. Girl parts are super-sensitive, especially between the ages of potty-training to puberty, and there could be a few things going on. So how do you know what the problem is?
Diagnosing UTIs in Children
First, your daughter would need to be seen. We cannot diagnose urinary tract infections in girls over the phone. We need them to actually come into the office and pee so we can do a urinalysis test. That will show if she has a UTI or if she's dehydrated and her burning with urination is due to concentrated urine.
It will also show if there is blood in the urine or any signs of diabetes as well, which doesn't cause burning with urination, but does cause frequent urination, which is another sign of a possible UTI.
Treatments for UTIs in Children
If your daughter does have a UTI, we can treat her with antibiotics while sending her urine off to get a culture at the lab and find out what type of bacteria is causing her UTI and make sure she's on the correct antibiotic.
If your daughter does not have a UTI, then we need to ask a few more questions, like is she drinking enough water? Does she take bubble baths? Is she wiping too hard? Is she wiping at all? Is she wiping in the right direction? Does she have any vaginal symptoms? And yes, we have to ask if anyone has touched her inappropriately down there.
Based on those answers, we can talk about treatments. Will drinking more water help? What about cranberry juice? Which may or may not help, depending on what's going on. Does she need any special creams for her private area? Does she need to work on better hygiene? If she is sexually active, do we need to test for chlamydia or gonorrhea? Is this not a urinary issue but more a vaginal issue?
What NOT to do for Your Child's UTI
Everything is in such a small space in that area that it can be hard to figure out what is going on and what the correct treatment is.
I've had parents ask me about certain home remedies that I can tell you, you should not do. Don't do the following. Don't have your daughter douche to clear out the UTI.
Similarly, I had one mom tell me that she was told to soak a tampon in probiotic kefir and insert it in her vagina to treat a UTI. Neither of those will help because a UTI is in the urinary system and inserting something into the genital system won't help. Just because they're in close proximity doesn't mean that they are treated the same.
Don't put random creams in or on your daughter's privates without finding out what the main cause of her symptoms are. Sometimes, that will make the problem worse.
And don't give antibiotics that were left over from a previous infection, because not all antibiotics will treat urinary tract infections.
So if your daughter has girl-part issues, please bring them in to be seen by their pediatrician. We can help you figure out exactly what is going on and what is best to help them feel better.
MetaDescription
Is your young daughter complaining about painful urination when using the bathroom? It could be more than a urinary tract infection. Girl parts can be very sensitive, especially between the ages of potty training and puberty. Learn the most common causes of pain or irritation in the vagina or vulva, how to prevent them, and what treatments can provide relief to your daughter.
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A majority of children will not develop 20/20 vision until they are four to six years old. During those first few years, what should parents do to make sure their kids maintain healthy vision?…
Date Recorded
December 05, 2022 Transcription
Parents often ask me when I will be able to tell if their baby can see normally. That's hard. But vision screening is something that we do at well-child visits if your child does not already see an eye doctor. Today, I'll discuss the basics of vision screening in kids.
Vision Screening for Children Under Age 3
For children under age 3, any vision concerns need to be referred to a pediatric ophthalmologist, who is a medical doctor who treats eye issues. Some optometrists, who are doctors of optometry, or ODs, will see kids as young as 6 months old, but not usually.
Now, as pediatricians, we look at the eyes of kids starting at birth. We look to see if they have congenital cataracts, if their red reflexes are good. You know, when you take a picture of your kid and they have really bright red pupils, that's actually a good thing. We'll see if they have lazy eye or any other eye concern for which we need to have them see a specialist. But it's hard to check in the office to see if they need glasses at that age.
The American Academy of Pediatrics last updated their vision screening guidelines in 2021. We start doing vision exams at well-child visits starting at the age of 3. I usually tell kids at their 2.5-year well-child visit that when they come back to see me at 3, we'll have them play a picture game with my medical assistants.
It's actually the screening for visual acuity, which is to evaluate to see if they need to see an eye doctor for possible glasses. But a picture game sounds a whole lot more fun.
Vision Screening for School-age Children
Kids up until age 4 normally have 20/40 vision, and by age 5, they will have 20/30 vision. After that, their vision should be 20/25 or better. 20/20 is what most people know as normal vision, and that's what they should ideally have by age 6.
Often, the schools will want a child's vision screened before kindergarten. They will also do vision screening in the schools periodically. The parents will be notified if their child fails their vision screen, and we can repeat the vision exam here to make sure of the results, especially if the screener at school did not document on the letter what the child's visual acuity was.
Then we can help the family find an optometrist that can do a more in-depth vision evaluation and see what kind of glasses the child may need.
The forms that the schools send home usually require a signature from an actual optometrist to prove that the child saw an eye doctor. As pediatricians, we are not qualified to complete those forms and they will be returned to the parents if we fill them out. So if your child gets one of those forms, they do need to see an actual eye doctor.
How Often Should Your Child Have Their Vision Screened?
We recommend that a child has their vision screened at least once a year. That's why we do them at the well-child visits, which also happen once a year.
If your child wears glasses or contacts, the optometrist will let them know how often they need to be seen. Normally, it's still every year to make sure their prescription has not changed.
If you have any questions about your child's vision, talk to your child's pediatrician and we will evaluate what we can and let you know if your child needs to see an optometrist or an ophthalmologist for further testing.
MetaDescription
A majority of children will not develop 20/20 vision until they are four to six years old. During those first few years, what should parents do to make sure their kids maintain healthy vision? Learn the vision screening expectations during the first years of your child’s life, how to navigate school vision screening requirements, and when your child may need to see an optometrist.
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The rate of eating disorders among children under 12 has increased by 119% since 2020. Anorexia is the third most common chronic disorder among kids, behind asthma and obesity. Pediatrician Cindy…
Date Recorded
November 21, 2022 Health Topics (The Scope Radio)
Diet and Nutrition
Kids Health
Mental Health Transcription
Eating disorders have been around for a very long time, but they have skyrocketed in recent years. A recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that emergency room visits for mental health issues have increased at an alarming rate for kids aged 5 and up just since 2020. This is not just for anxiety and depression, but it seems that eating disorders are also increasing, especially among teen girls.
Why Eating Disorders are Increasing in Children
Why? Researchers who are studying the trends think that lack of structure in the daily routines of teens, emotional distress, and even fluctuations in whether families had food available or not, all contributed to the increase.
Eating disorders can develop at any time, but we see it most often in teens and more likely to be girls than boys. The National Eating Disorders Association reports that the rate of eating disorders has risen by 119% in kids under 12 just in the last few years, and anorexia is now the third most common chronic illness in teens only behind asthma and obesity.
Kids who are predisposed to anxiety, such as having a strong family history of anxiety or depression, seem to be more prone to eating disorders. Some clinical studies by psychologists also indicate that teens who spend more time on social media may be more at risk because they can exacerbate poor body image and constantly bombard kids with diet trends, and those can trigger eating disorders.
Teens with eating disorders often compare their bodies to peers and can feel bad about themselves if they don't have what they believe to be the perfect body.
How to Know if Your Child Has an Eating Disorder
So what are some signs to look out for if you think that your child may be at risk for an eating disorder? Well, look for behavioral changes. Kids, when they are struggling with body image issues, will often isolate themselves, withdrawal from social activities or seem overly sad or angry.
Some big behavior changes that parents should watch out for according to the National Alliance for Eating Disorders is hiding food, eating in secret, starting a new diet, obsessing over physical activity, or going to the bathroom every time after eating a meal.
Next Steps if You Think Your Child Has an Eating Disorder
The first step, if you think your child might have an eating disorder, is to make an appointment with your child's pediatrician. We can check their height, weight, and body mass index and look for any alarming trends. If there are concerns, we can do labs and possibly an EKG.
If the labs and EKG are reassuring, then the next step is to get a psychiatrist involved. If the labs or EKG are not okay, then your child may be admitted to the hospital to medically stabilize them while they start working on treatment options for their eating disorder.
A psychiatrist needs to be involved because these are brain-based illnesses with biological, psychological, and social components, not just something your child chooses to do usually.
Parents need to educate themselves too. Some good resources are the National Eating Disorder Association, Project HEAL, and the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders, also FEAST.
Your child needs their feelings and struggles supported, and with the stigma of shame around eating disorders that can make the problem worse. This is a disease that affects entire families. There is help out there. Your pediatrician is the first place to start. But be aware this is not something your pediatrician will manage. It involves a lot of therapy and work with a mental health provider.
MetaDescription
The rate of eating disorders among children under 12 has increased by 119% since 2020, making anorexia the third most common chronic disorder among kids behind asthma and obesity. Learn what could be causing this increase and how to identify the most common red flags of potential eating disorders. As well as what steps can be taken to help get your child the help they need.
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No one likes to be poked with a needle, whether for a vaccine or a blood draw. But for children, getting a shot at the doctor's office can be frightening and lead to some emotional outbursts.…
Date Recorded
November 15, 2022 Health Topics (The Scope Radio)
Kids Health Transcription
Needle phobia. It's something that as a pediatrician I see every day, several times a day. At least two-thirds of children have a fear of needles. It's hard to tell who is worse with it though, little kids or teenagers.
Unfortunately, vaccines are still given as shots at this time, and kids get a lot of shots to help build their immune system. At the mere mention of being due for vaccines or blood work, some kids will just burst into tears.
So what can you as a parent do to help when your child is due for a vaccine or needs blood work done? I always will tell parents and kids at the well visit before they are due for vaccines that the next time they have a checkup, there are shots involved.
Mainly, I do this to avoid surprises. Often parents will say that they had no idea their child was due for shots. So when I tell the kids, they remember the next time and that actually seems to help them be better prepared. It's the surprise "you need a shot" announcement that catches kids off guard more and their anxiety goes through the roof.
Parents also feel better knowing that they can tell their child that, "We talked about this," and that they can prepare their child in advance, not spring it on them on the drive to the office or once they get here.
One thing we as pediatricians ask that you don't do is tell your kid that if they don't behave, they'll get a shot. I hear that all the time as a scare tactic and it really bothers me. I'm not going to give your child a shot if it's not needed.
If you tell your child in front of me that I will give your child a shot if they misbehave, I will tell your child that I don't give shots for behavior, but I do have time out spots in the clinic.
And for the teenagers, if they get out of hand, we do have security officers who can help with behavior outbursts. And yes, sometimes that has been needed when the teenagers become violent.
Kids often will ask me if the shots hurt. Well, they are shots. They're not fuzzy caterpillars. Same with the needles we use to draw blood. I tell kids that, "Yes, they hurt just a little, but it's over quickly," and, "We have to use the needles, but for a good reason," and it's to make sure that they are healthy.
I try to be upfront and honest with the kids. Even little kids understand when you tell them the truth in a calm manner and explain why we are doing what we are doing.
I had a vaccine one day and I saw a patient later who was afraid of getting a shot. I showed her my Band-Aid and she was so surprised. She was like, "But you're the doctor." And I said, "Yes, I am, and I sometimes have to get shots too." She then said if I was brave enough to get one, then so was she.
I also tell kids when they're old enough what vaccines they're getting and why they're getting them. I ask if they have any questions about the vaccines, and that seems to help them understand the importance of the vaccines.
Same with the blood work. I explain everything to them so that they know I'm not ordering labs just because I want to torture them. It's because I'm trying to figure out what is going on in their bodies and how to make them healthier.
I also have the advantage of telling kids and parents that my medical assistants are who I trust with my own family and who I trust to draw my blood and give me any immunizations. So they know that they're in good hands.
I let them know that I don't like getting needles poked in me either, so they know they're not alone and that I get it.
I talk directly to the kids so they know they're heard and we are doing what we can to make this as easy an experience as we can. And they know that they get a sticker when they're done for being so brave, no matter how old they are.
So while needle phobia is a real thing, there are ways as parents that you can help make immunizations and blood draws less scary, which goes a long way when the kids are here in the office.
MetaDescription
No one likes to be poked with a needle, whether for a vaccine or a blood draw. But for children, getting a shot at the doctor's office can be frightening and lead to some emotional outbursts. Pediatrician Cindy Gellner, MD, explains what she does in her practice to ensure kids are not overly afraid of needles, and shares some tips for parents to get their child the medical treatment they need while avoiding a tantrum.
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