Columbia Children's Health

Drs. Edith Bracho-Sanchez and John Rausch tell CNN readers how the COVID-19 pandemic and associated closures have impacted children’s nutrition and physical activity. With increasing parental unemployment, food insecurity, and remote learning, families are more likely to turn to cheaper, higher-calorie, processed foods to feed their kids. This can lead to rising obesity rates, especially in Black and Brown communities hit hardest by the pandemic. Learn more about the actions we can take to turn the tide of children’s health in 2021 below.

I want families to receive the sort of care at Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital that I would want to receive with my own children. Dr. Jordan Orange, Pediatrician-in-Chief at @newyorkpresbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital and Chair of Pediatrics at Columbia, outlines his vision for innovative, collaborative, and high-quality care for children in this video.

A recent study from researchers at Columbia found that children and adults produce different types and amounts of antibodies in response to infection with the coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2. Responses to the infection in children suggest that kids clear the virus more efficiently than adults and may not need a strong antibody immune response to get rid of it. Learn more about the results and implications of the study below.

Fifteen years ago, Columbia pediatrician Dr. Adriana Matiz helped establish a pioneering community health worker program for the community around the medical center that’s still active today. Program members work closely with community-based organizations to connect patient families with local resources focused on documentation status, food stamp benefits, educational access, and other non-medical concerns, along with providing medical support and wellness checks. During the pandemic, this program has been crucial for helping patients get the care and resources they need. Read more about the program and Dr. Adriana’s work below.

In September of 2019, two-year-old Ian Charles was diagnosed with hepatoblastoma, a rare type of liver cancer that can affect babies and young children. Doctors found a malignant tumor infiltrating 75% of Ian’s liver. Ian would likely need a liver transplant. Doctors referred Ian’s parents Paul and Dia to NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital. Will, a paramedic from Massachusetts, had generously registered to be a living organ donor - and was a match for Ian. In February of 2020, surgeon Tomoaki Kato, MD, transplanted 20% of Will’s liver into Ian. In a surprise segment on GMA3: What You Need to Know, Ian and Dia met Will and were able to thank him for his donation! Read more about Ian’s story and the surprise virtual meeting below.

The pandemic has ratcheted up everybody’s stress levels, but children’s pandemic-related fears and worries can be especially crippling. Carolina Zerrate, MD, assistant professor of psychiatry at Columbia, shared with the New York Times tips for helping children process these difficult feelings. She suggested that parents model how to express emotions and ask for help and support. Read more from her below.

Columbia’s new webinar series covers some of the timeliest issues in children’s health. In our November webinar Columbia diabetes specialists Rudy Leibel, Robin Goland, Barney Softness, and Natasha Leibel spoke with Dr. Max Gomez of CBS about Type 1 Diabetes, its causes, and groundbreaking treatments and technologies available at the Naomi Berrie Diabetes Center at Columbia University Medical Center. You can watch this webinar below and others in our series on YouTube.

A new study from Columbia/NewYork-Presbyterian shows that when hospital staff and parents engage in basic infection-prevention measures like social distancing and wearing a mask, mothers with COVID-19 rarely transmit the underlying virus SARS-CoV-2 to their newborns after delivery. Read more about this important study below.

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a chronic condition with painful symptoms; half of those affected will not live past the age of 50. Currently, bone marrow transplantation from a matched sibling donor is the only known curative treatmentbut only 15% of patients have such a donor. Promising new research is bringing new hope for people with SCD: Monica Bhatia, MD, Director of Columbia’s Pediatric Stem Cell Transplant Program, is participating in an international trial evaluating CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing as a curative treatment for SCD and thalassemia. With encouraging initial results in similar trials for adults, CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing may revolutionize treatment for pediatric patients with genetic blood disorders. Learn more about Dr. Bhatia’s research here: https://www.pediatrics.columbia.edu//clinical-trial-begins

A Columbia study of over 7,000 patients from the congenital heart disease center found that adults and children born with heart defects had a lower-than-expected risk of developing moderate or severe COVID-19 symptoms. Matthew Lewis, MD, co-leader of the study, shared, We were reassured by the low number of congenital heart patients who required hospitalization for COVID-19 and the relatively good outcomes of these patients. Learn more about this research below.

In 2015, around his 15th birthday, Jackson Hendrix felt a lump in his abdomen. Doctors later found a mass on the right side of his liver the size of a softball and diagnosed him with Fibro, an ultra-rare, unpredictable liver cancer. With a devastating diagnosis and few options for relief, Jackson’s parents were referred to Tomoaki (Tom) Kato, MD, Chief of the Division of Abdominal Organ Transplantation at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center. In an intense, 14-hour procedure, Dr. Kato was able to successfully remove all of Jackson’s tumor and address other dangerous internal issues. Jackson has been accepted into the National Honor Society and is now heading off to college. Learn more about Jackson’s incredible story below.

People who live in communities with little access to nutritious food and few opportunities to exercise are at a greater risk of obesity, and subsequently of suffering severe illness from COVID-19, Columbia pediatric gastroenterologist Jennifer Woo Baidal, MD, MPH told the New York Times. She noted the importance of addressing social determinants of health, such as access to healthy food, to reduce the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 and other illnesses.

With many young people continuing to use e-cigarette products, pediatric pulmonologist Stephanie Lovinsky-Desir discussed e-cigarette use as a risk factor for COVID-19 and other respiratory illnesses with The New York Times. It is quite clear that smoking and vaping are bad for the lungs, and the predominant symptoms of Covid are respiratory. Those two things are going to be bad in combination, she said. Read more from her below.

Halloween is just around the corner but during COVID-19, should your family plan to trick-or-treat? Columbia pediatrician Edith Bracho-Sanchez, MD shared with Good Morning America tips and guidelines for having fun safely on that spooky day. She says ...it’s going to be really important that adults plan together in their community and their neighborhood or in their building to make this safe for children and for the adults around them. Learn more below.

September is National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month, a time to encourage young people to eat healthily and get active! Obesity, which disproportionately affects low-income neighborhoods and communities of color, has emerged as a significant risk factor for severe COVID-19 symptoms. At Columbia, our dedicated Childhood Research in Obesity Prevention (CROP) group, led by Jennifer Woo Baidal, MD, MPH, studies the causes of and interventions to eliminate racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic disparities in childhood obesity and associated diseases including nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Learn more about their vital research below.

Wondering how to talk to your child about grief, life-threatening illnesses, and pandemic-related stresses? In The New York Times, Columbia psychiatrist and lecturer Elena Lister, MD outlines steps you can take to comfort and care for your child during this time. She says, I’m a believer in no rush, holding your child, being close to your child, letting that sink in for a few seconds, waiting to see what comes up. . Read the article below for more practical tips on navigating these difficult conversations:

COVID-19 has altered the way young people communicate, develop relationships, and engage in sexual behavior. Parents play a critical role in moderating tensions associated with health, safety, and social life during this time. David Bell, MD, MPH, professor of population and family health and pediatrics, shared with The New York Times advice for parents in this difficult position. For those with children in school, he suggests maybe starting off the semester with a heart-to-heart about acknowledging this unique situation. Learn more below.

If getting covid-19 myself and watching a child battle covid-19 have taught me anything, it’s that the virus is complicated, journalist and mother Mary Pflum Peterson writes in this sobering story for The Washington Post. She talks about the real lingering effects COVID-19 can have on adolescents and what parents should be prepared for if their child gets the virus. As she notes, Columbia is conducting critical studies to assess the potential impacts and to help families take the necessary steps to ensure safety and support recovery. See the full story below.

In many localities the school year has just begun, and the question of school safety during COVID remains on the minds of parents nationwide. In this detailed guide from the National Center of Disease Preparedness at Columbia University, our experts in children’s health and disease response provide clear principles and decision points for parents as they think about COVID-19 and school safety. . Irwin Redlener, MD and Karen Redlener, MS say, Every child is unique, and we know that many factors may contribute to making a decision about in class versus remote learning. . Learn more below.

As schools open up after families may have spent months close to, or at, home, some children may experience separation anxiety. Columbia’s Paula Yanes-Lukin, PhD, spoke to The New York Times about finding opportunities for kids to exercise their brave muscles and strategies parents can use to support them through these separations.

New minimally invasive surgical techniques and tools are enabling doctors to perform life-changing surgeries in smaller and smaller infants these days, says Steven Stylianos, MD, Columbia's Chief of Pediatric Surgery. Before, we were limited by the technology, which just wasn't miniature enough, but now it isFamilies are just amazed that their newborn can have lung surgery and go home the next day, where it used to be at least a week with days in the ICU. This very, very intense paradigm shift is really wonderful. Learn more about the exciting future of pediatric surgery:

Is it okay to send my child to school during #Covid19? Join us for a Covid-19 Town Hall Event on Sept. 1 at 12:00 PM EST: The facts as we know them for parents, the public - and the media. #BackToSchoolCOVID http://ow.ly/o43L50Bc8wI

How can you tell if your child has Covid-19, the flu or a cold? Because the symptoms of Covid-19 mimic so many other typical childhood illnesses, it’s really hard to tell, according to Eva Cheung, MD, a pediatric cardiologist and critical care specialist at NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital and Columbia University Medical Center. Unfortunately, there is no one very distinguishing feature, she told the New York Times. In addition, doctors don’t actually know whether fever is always the first sign of infection, or not, she says. The overarching advice is that you just have to err on the side of caution much more readily in cities and places where the infection rate is high. Learn more about the signs of COVID in kids, and what parents should do if they observe these symptoms, here:

Regina Kachkoff-Enk is a nurse at NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital, and she’s also a trained opera singer who feels that music is always helpful in times of distress. Read about one of Regina’s favorite performances to date in the children’s emergency department and her experience caring for adults in severe distress at the height of the COVID wave last spring, along with other stories from the front lines.