questions
answers
HOW HAVE IMMUNIZATIONS
CHANGED YOUR PRACTICE OF
PEDIATRICS?
“There are a lot of diseases my father saw, such as Polio, that we don’t see
now because of proper immunizations. But there are also diseases that I
don’t see now that I saw as a resident, such as several forms of meningitis.
That’s why immunizations are so important to us. One of the biggest things
in pediatrics is prevention, and a lot of people take those diseases for granted
because they may not see them now. The measles problem that came up
recently brought that to light.
DO YOU OFTEN SEE CHILDREN WHO
HAVE AN OTHERWISE PREVENTABLE
DISEASE BECAUSE THEY MISSED A
VACCINATION?
Very rarely. Children in our practice need to be immunized, which mirrors
the opinion of the American Academy of Pediatrics. We work to educate
parents on the importance of immunizations and most parents agree they
are necessary. Parents who do not immunize their children are asked to seek
medical care at a different provider.
HOW HAVE FLU VACCINES
EVOLVED OVER YOUR TIME AS A
PEDIATRICIAN?
When the vaccine came out, they had some problems with it. So it got
stereotyped that if you got the flu vaccine, you’d get the flu. That’s just
not true. The vaccine isn’t 100 percent effective against the flu but it does
prevent the majority of it. Most of the kids we treated last year for the flu
did not have the flu vaccine. There were some reported failures, but it was
very rare for us to see one. It seemed to be very effective.
DO PARENTS EVER ASK FOR
ANTIBIOTICS WHEN THEIR
CHILDREN MIGHT NOT NEED THEM?
That is an issue. The overuse of antibiotics has caused resistance to certain
forms of bacteria. We have signs in each room of our office. If the child is
suffering from a viral illness, you can only treat the symptoms. There is no
medication that makes it go away faster. However, a viral infection can get
bacterial infections on top of it. For example, a head cold can lead to an ear
infection. The ear infection can be treated with antibiotics but you can’t
treat the disease before it exists.
WHAT CAN PARENTS AND CHILDREN
DO TO PREVENT ILLNESS AS MUCH
AS POSSIBLE?
If kids have fever, they shouldn’t be going to school. A good handwashing
technique before eating is important. Kids also shouldn’t drink after each
other, whether or not they’re sick. For example, in team sports, they shouldn’t
share water bottles.
ARE THERE OTHER COMMON ISSUES
YOU SEE WHICH THE PUBLIC SHOULD
BE MORE AWARE OF?
One of the leading issues we see with children are accidents. Unintentional
accidents such as automobile accidents or falls are the leading cause of
death in children. So we start from day one trying to prevent these through
education about things such as car seats and bicycle helmets. (Editor’s Note:
For more information regarding preventable injuries, visit page 4)
DOES YOUR PEDIATRICS OFFICE
HAVE A BUSY SEASON?
Illness in general usually starts when the school year does. When kids start
being exposed to one another, that’s when you see a lot of infectious disease.
The majority of it is viral illnesses, a lot of strep throat and viruses which
cause gastro-intestinal problems. These occur all year-round but more so
during school. People often say, ‘Oh, there’s a virus going around.’ There’s
always a virus going around.
VITAL SIGNS Volume 10 • Issue 2
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