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Sri Lanka Journal of Child Health , 2012; 41 (1): 38-39 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4038/sljch.v41i1.4135


Acute Maternal HIV Infection During Pregnancy and Breast-feeding: Preventing Mother-to-Child Transmission in Resource-Limited Settings
An enlarging body of data from resource-limited settings shows high rates of maternal conversion from HIV-negative to HIV-positive status during pregnancy or breast-feeding.The rate of MTCT in unrecognized (usually acute) HIV infection is high.Programs that aim to prevent MTCT in high-HIVincidence settings should institute retesting (late in the third trimester or during labour) of pregnant women who were HIV-negative earlier in pregnancy and should strengthen education about HIV prevention during pregnancy and breastfeeding.
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/718849?src =mp&spon=1&uac=60307BR Study Links Dogs, Not Cats, to Kids' Asthma Risk For children at higher-than-average risk of asthma, having a dog around the house may increase the chances of developing the disease, a new study suggests.The study, which followed 380 children at increased risk of asthma due to family history, found that those exposed to relatively high levels of dog allergen at the age of 7 were more likely to have asthma.In contrast, there was no relationship between cat-allergen exposure and a child's risk of asthma, according to findings published online March 19th in Pediatric Allergy and Immunology.http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/719937

Longer Treatment of JIA in Remission May Not Reduce Relapses
For patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) in remission, withdrawal of methotrexate treatment for 12 months vs. 6 months does not lower the relapse rate, according to the results of a prospective, open, multicenter, randomized controlled trial reported in the April 7 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Zinc in Pregnancy Combats Children's Diarrhoea
In developing countries such as Peru, where zinc deficiency is common, giving pregnant women zinc supplements may help curb diarrhoea-related illness in their babies, research hints.In a study, Peruvian infants of women who took zinc while pregnant had fewer days with diarrhoea, relative to infants of women who took a placebo.They were also less apt to have a bout of diarrhoea lasting for more than a week.http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/720052

Symptoms Alone Do Not Predict Acute Otitis Media in Young Children
Acute otitis media (AOM) cannot be predicted by parental reports of the presence, duration, and severity of AOM symptoms in children at the otitis-prone age of 6 to 35 months, according to results of a Finnish study reported online April 5 in Pediatrics. http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/720060

Childhood on a Farm Lowers Risk for Adolescent Asthma
Children growing up on farms in Sweden were less likely to have asthma as adolescents -"in line with the hygiene hypothesis," say the study's authors.http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/720946

Does Breastfeeding Protect Against Asthma?
Exclusive breastfeeding during the first 4 months of life may reduce a child's risk of developing asthma by their eighth birthday, according to a new study.http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/720975

Asthmatics at Higher Risk for Anaphylaxis
Asthmatic patients have higher rates of anaphylaxis -and the more severe the asthma, the greater their increase in risk, according to a recent study.The risk of anaphylaxis was 2-fold greater (RR 2.07) in patients with non-severe asthma compared to nonasthmatics, and 3-fold greater in the severe asthma group (RR 3.29).Female asthmatics had a higher risk of anaphylaxis than males (22.65

Computer Model May Improve Detection of Serious Bacterial Infection in Young Children With Fever Use
of a computer model may improve detection of serious bacterial infection in young children with fever, according to the results of a 2-year, prospective cohort study reported in the April 20 issue of the BMJ.http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/720842