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24 Questions for Your Teen to Ask Their Doctor By Lauren K. Ayr-Volta, PhD: By the time your child enters their teenage years, they should be getting ready to take charge of their own health. The more confident they feel speaking up at doctor’s visits, the better. It gives their doctor more information to support them through adolescence – and sets your
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Minimally Invasive Craniosynostosis Surgery: A Game-Changer for Babies By Bethany Simonetti MSN, APRN, FNP-BC: Are you worried about your baby’s head shape and what it could mean? Flat spots, or plagiocephaly, tend to improve on their own, but if your doctor suspects craniosynostosis, which may require surgical repair, you naturally have lots of questions. Our pediatric neurosurgery team
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How Do I Safely Clean My Child's Ears? By Rachelle Wareham, MD: This article was originally published in March 2025 and has been updated on June 23, 2025 with a video. Did you know there are right and “wrong” ways to clean your child’s ears? According to Rachelle Wareham, MD, pediatric otolaryngologist (ENT), it’s common to see kids with ear
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Portion Sizes for Kids: How Much Food Is Healthy for My Child’s Age? By Jennifer Zarrilli, MS, RD: Some days, figuring out what to feed your child is hard enough. Figuring out how much can seem downright impossible. The recommended portions for a child depend on their age and even gender – and unfortunately, the serving size listed on grocery store labels doesn’t have much to Article
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome in Kids: Symptoms, Causes, and When to See a Specialist By Sonia Chaudhry, MD, FAAOS: Sonia Chaudhry, MD, orthopedic surgeon, dives into what carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is, how it can affect kids, and when it’s time to see a pediatric orthopedic specialist.
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4 Things to Know About Ear Tube Surgery for Kids By Christopher Grindle, MD: This blog was originally published in 2021 and was updated in February 2025. Ear tube surgery is the most common surgery for children in the United States – in fact, about half a million kids have the procedure every year. Kids (and adults) can get ear tubes at any age, but it’s
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Adult Skincare Products are Not Safe for Kids. Here’s Why. By Juan C. Salazar, MD, MPH, FAAP: No. It’s not safe for kids to use adult skincare products. But thanks to TikTok “skinfluencer” trends everywhere (#schoolgrwm, for one), kids are getting the wrong messages about what it means to keep skin healthy. Many preteens and children as young as 6 years old (!) have been
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The 8 Golden Rules of Summer Safety for All Ages By Kevin Borrup, DrPH, JD, MPA: “Trauma season” – that’s how emergency medicine providers and injury prevention experts often refer to the months of May through August. That’s because of the dramatic increase in the number of children injured during the warm spring and summer months. Favorite summer activities
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Such a Miracle: Jack's Story At 17 weeks pregnant, Ashley Donnelly’s water broke. She wasn’t even halfway through a full-term pregnancy. At her Ob/Gyn’s office, and then with her maternal fetal medicine team, the experts gently prepared her for the worst. “I could see it on everybody’s faces,” she says.
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Beyond Leukemia: Alex's Story She’d already survived cancer, heart failure, a deadly lung infection and septic shock. Now, she was grimly determined to face her next challenge: relearning how to walk. Her goal: one minute.
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Healing Beyond Injury: The Role of Hospital-Based Violence Intervention in Hartford When a patient arrives at the hospital after experiencing violence, their recovery often involves much more than just treating physical injuries. Renee Beavers, a Hospital-Based Violence Intervention Program (HVIP) Specialist at Connecticut Children’s, plays a key role in
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Connecticut Children's Expands into Homecare, Serving Connecticut's Most Vulnerable Children Hartford, CT (December 12, 2024) – Connecticut Children’s, the state’s only independent health system dedicated exclusively to children, has expanded its services to include homecare, addressing the critical needs of Connecticut’s most vulnerable and underserved pediatric Article
Beyond Clubfoot: John and Sam’s Story By Philip W. Mack, MD: John, 9, is an aspiring YouTube star and professional athlete. Sam, 6, loves nature and participating in John’s antics. Both boys were born with clubfoot. Every June 3, Emily and Zack McElroy celebrate World Clubfoot Day in honor of their sons.
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How to Help Kids Handle Holiday Disappointment if Omicron Changes Your Plans By Amy Adolfo Signore, PhD, MPH: The holidays are always full of surprises. This year, as we wait to learn more about the Omicron variant, families are dealing with more uncertainty than usual. Whether you’re rethinking travel, opting for a smaller gathering, or dealing with a family member’s COVID-19 exposure Article
Driving Change Through Golf in Hartford's Youth Community The Golf, Not Drugs initiative was developed in the summer of 2024 with the goal of engaging Hartford youth in positive, healthy activities. Offering free golf lessons at Keney Park Golf Course, the program aimed not only to teach the fundamentals of golf but also to provide