Lead Exposure Tied to Early Risk of School Suspension: MedlinePlus

Lead Exposure Tied to Early Risk of School Suspension: MedlinePlus

 

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Lead Exposure Tied to Early Risk of School Suspension

Kids’ attention levels and behavior may be affected, study suggests

By Robert Preidt

Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Related MedlinePlus Pages

• Child Behavior Disorders



• Lead Poisoning

TUESDAY, Aug. 20 (HealthDay News) — By the time they reach the fourth grade, children exposed to lead are nearly three times more likely to have been suspended, a new study contends.
The findings from nearly 4,000 children in the Milwaukee school district suggest that lead exposure may play more of a role in school discipline problems than was realized, according to the University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers.
“Students who are suspended from school are at greater risk of dropping out, twice as likely to use tobacco, and more likely to engage in violent behavior later in life,” study first author Michael Amato, a doctoral candidate in psychology and at the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, said in a university news release.
Black students are three times more likely to be suspended than white students nationally, according to background information in the news release. The same difference was found in this study, but differences in rates of lead exposure accounted for 23 percent of the disparity, the researchers said.
Black children are more than twice as likely as white children to have elevated lead levels, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Researchers attribute this to black children being more likely to live in low-income neighborhoods and rental housing where lead remains in the buildings and soil.
Many previous studies have identified disparities in school discipline, but few have pinpointed the underlying factors, the news release said.
“We knew that lead exposure decreases children’s abilities to control their attention and behavior, but we were still surprised that exposed children were so much more likely to be suspended,” study co-author Sheryl Magzamen, who is now an assistant professor at the University of Oklahoma, said in the news release.
The researchers noted that animal experiments have shown that lead causes decreased attention and decreased control over behavior when an animal is startled or touched. If children exposed to lead behave the same way, they’re more likely to have disruptive classroom behaviors that can result in suspension, according to the researchers.
Although the study found an association between childhood lead exposure and increased risk of school suspension, it didn’t prove cause-and-effect.
The study appears in the September issue of the journal Environmental Research.

SOURCE: University of Wisconsin-Madison, news release, Aug. 14, 2013

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Severe Lower Respiratory Tract Infection in Early Infancy and Pneumonia Hospitalizations among Children, Kenya - Vol. 19 No. 2 - February 2013 - Emerging Infectious Disease journal - CDC

full-text â–º
Severe Lower Respiratory Tract Infection in Early Infancy and Pneumonia Hospitalizations among Children, Kenya – Vol. 19 No. 2 – February 2013 – Emerging Infectious Disease journal – CDC

Table of Contents
Volume 19, Number 2– February 2013

Volume 19, Number 2—February 2013

Research

Severe Lower Respiratory Tract Infection in Early Infancy and Pneumonia Hospitalizations among Children, Kenya

Article Contents

• Methods


• Study Population


• Results


• Discussion


• Acknowledgments


• References


• Figure 1


• Figure 2


• Table 1


• Table 2


• Technical Appendix  [104 KB - 2 pages]


• Suggested Citation

Patrick Kiio Munywoki , Eric O. Ohuma, Mwanajuma Ngama, Evasius Bauni, J. Anthony G. Scott, and D. James Nokes

Author affiliations: Author affiliations: KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme Centre for Geographic Medicine Research–Coast, Kilifi, Kenya (P.K. Munywoki, E.O. Ohuma, M. Ngama, E. Bauni, J.A.G. Scott, D.J. Nokes); University of Oxford, Oxford, UK (E.O. Ohuma, J.A.G. Scott); University of Warwick, Coventry, UK (D.J. Nokes)

Suggested citation for this article

Abstract

Severe lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) in infants caused by respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) has been associated with later pneumonia hospitalization among children. To determine risk for pneumonia after RSV hospitalization in infancy, we conducted a retrospective cohort analysis of 2,813 infants admitted to a hospital in Kenya and identified readmissions for pneumonia among this group during early childhood (<60 months of age). Incidence of readmission for pneumonia was higher for children whose first admission as infants was for LRTI and who were <3 months of age than for children who were first admitted as infants for non-LRTI, irrespective of RSV status. Incidence of readmission for pneumonia with wheeze was higher for children whose first admission involved RSV compared with those who had non-RSV LRTI. Excess pneumonia risk persisted for 2 years after the initial hospitalization. Close postdischarge follow-up of infants with LRTI, with or without RSV, could help prevent severe pneumonia later in childhood.

Pneumonia is a major cause of illness and death among children 15>
,2), and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the most common viral cause of pneumonia and bronchiolitis in this age group (3,4). RSV infection in infancy is associated with other long-term respiratory problems (5–10) and, in one study, with pneumonia (11). The magnitude and duration of the increased risk for pneumonia after RSV infection are poorly defined (12). In addition, it is not clear whether this association is specific to RSV or whether other causes of lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) in infancy are also associated with later pneumonia (11). A study in The Gambia reported an increased incidence of hospital admission for pneumonia, measurable up to 3 years after discharge (11). We report results of a retrospective cohort analysis of children admitted to a rural district hospital in Kenya using data from a prospective longitudinal clinical surveillance project nested within a health and demographic surveillance system (13). The cohort was defined as all infants admitted to the hospital during 9 RSV seasons during 2002–2010; the infants were classified into exposure groups on the basis of the clinical features of LRTI and laboratory diagnosis of RSV at the first admission. The main outcome was readmission to a hospital for pneumonia before the age of 5 years.

CDC - Learn the Signs. Act Early. Milestones 3 Years - NCBDDD

CDC – Learn the Signs. Act Early. Milestones 3 Years – NCBDDD

Important Milestones: Your Child at Three Years

Milestone Checklist

Download and print this checklist

Order free materials

How your child plays, learns, speaks, and acts offers important clues about your child’s development. Developmental milestones are things most children can do by a certain age.
Check the milestones your child has reached by his or her 3rd birthday. Take this with you and talk with your child’s doctor at every visit about the milestones your child has reached and what to expect next.

What most babies do at this age:

Social and Emotional

• Copies adults and friends


• Shows affection for friends without prompting


• Takes turns in games


• Shows concern for crying friend


• Understands the idea of “mine” and “his” or “hers”


• Shows a wide range of emotions


• Separates easily from mom and dad


• May get upset with major changes in routine


• Dresses and undresses self

Language/Communication

• Follows instructions with 2 or 3 steps


• Can name most familiar things


• Understands words like “in,” “on,” and “under”


• Says first name, age, and sex


• Names a friend


• Says words like “I,” “me,” “we,” and “you” and some plurals (cars, dogs, cats)


• Talks well enough for strangers to understand most of the time


• Carries on a conversation using 2 to 3 sentences

Cognitive (learning, thinking, problem-solving)

• Can work toys with buttons, levers, and moving parts


• Plays make-believe with dolls, animals, and people


• Does puzzles with 3 or 4 pieces


• Understands what “two” means
  


• Copies a circle with pencil or crayon


• Turns book pages one at a time


• Builds towers of more than 6 blocks


• Screws and unscrews jar lids or turns door handle

Movement/Physical Development

• Climbs well
  


• Runs easily
  


• Pedals a tricycle (3-wheel bike)
  


• Walks up and down stairs, one foot on each step

Act early by talking to your child’s doctor if your child:

• Falls down a lot or has trouble with stairs


• Drools or has very unclear speech


• Can’t work simple toys (such as peg boards, simple puzzles, turning handle)


• Doesn’t speak in sentences


• Doesn’t understand simple instructions


• Doesn’t play pretend or make-believe


• Doesn’t want to play with other children or with toys


• Doesn’t make eye contact


• Loses skills he once had

If You’re Concerned – Act Early

Tell your child’s doctor or nurse if you notice any of these signs of possible developmental delay for this age, andtalk with someone in your community who is familiar withservices for young children in your area, such as your state’s public early intervention program. For more information, visit our “If You’re Concerned” web page or call 1-800-CDC-INFO.

“Learn the signs. Act early.” materials are not a substitute for standardized, validated developmental screening tools .

Related Pages

• Developmental Disabilities


• Child Development


• Positive Parenting Tips


• National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities

Adapted from CARING FOR YOUR BABY AND YOUNG CHILD: BIRTH TO AGE 5, Fifth Edition, edited by Steven Shelov and Tanya Remer Altmann © 1991, 1993, 1998, 2004, 2009 by the American Academy of Pediatrics and BRIGHT FUTURES: GUIDELINES FOR HEALTH SUPERVISION OF INFANTS, CHILDREN, AND ADOLESCENTS, Third Edition, edited by Joseph Hagan, Jr., Judith S. Shaw, and Paula M. Duncan, 2008, Elk Grove Village, IL: American Academy of Pediatrics.