Continental Centre for Children, Children's Hospital in Hyderabad

Adolescent medicine

• It is a medical subspecialty that focuses on the care of patients who are in the adolescent period of development.
• They are specialists who talk to adolescents about topics like reproductive health, drugs, eating disorders, irregular periods, mood changes, questions about sexual identity, and problems at home or school.
• Adolescents or Teenagers sometimes have depression, anxiety and other mental challenges that require time and care to heal. Treatment is provided to them using psychiatric counseling, therapy to address the teenager’s emotional and medical needs by assessing the problems they face and by creating an individual treatment plan.
• Our child care specialists at Continental Hospitals holistically help such troubled teens.

HIV and AIDS prevention and care

• AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) is caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). AIDS is an advanced stage of HIV.
• There is no cure for an HIV infection.
• When treating children affected by HIV and autoimmune diseases, antiretroviral drugs are given to the children. For preventing HIV transmission from mother to baby, there is a recommendation for antiretroviral management of drugs.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

• ADHD is usually treated with medication and psychological therapy in children. There are here are 5 types of medication licensed for the treatment of ADHD:
• Methylphenidate, dexamfetamine, lisdexamfetamine, atomoxetine, guanfacine. But, the pediatric consultant knows which medication is best for the child suffering from ADHD as each child is different.
• Behavior therapy usually involves behavior management, which uses a system of rewards to encourage a child to try to control their ADHD. Specially tailored parent training and education programs can help in learning specific ways of talking to a child, and playing and working with them to improve their attention and behavior.

Bone cysts

• They are fluid-filled pockets in the bone that have not developed into actual bone or bone tissue. Benign (noncancerous) bone cysts are common in children and often go away on their own

Children and youth special health care needs

Chronic fatigue syndrome

• Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is a complicated disorder characterized by extreme fatigue that can’t be explained by any underlying medical condition.
• There is no cure for chronic fatigue syndrome, but the treatment focuses on symptom relief of medication and therapy. Medication includes a low dose of antidepressants. Therapy includes cognitive training and graded exercises such as stretching etc.

Club Foot

• It is a birth defect that can affect one or both feet. Early treatment usually helps correct it.
• Treatment for club foot usually starts within a week or two of the baby being born.A technique known as the Ponseti method is the main treatment for club foot, which involves gently manipulating the baby’s foot into a better position, and then putting it into a cast. This is repeated every week for about 5 to 8 weeks. After the last cast comes off, most babies need a minor operation to loosen the tendon at the back of their ankle (Achilles tendon), which is done using a local anesthetic. It helps to release their foot into a more natural position. The baby will need to wear special boots attached to each other with a bar to prevent the club foot returning.

Cerebral Palsy

• Cerebral palsy (CP) refers to a group of disorders that affect muscle movement and coordination. In many cases, vision, hearing, and sensation are also affected. There is no cure for cerebral palsy.
• Treatment includes providing assistive aids like wheelchair, eyeglasses, and hearing aids, medications like anticonvulsants, muscle relaxants, and orthopedic surgery to improve mobility in children.

Developmental screening and referral

• A child having a developmental delay has to be screened and monitored.  For it to be identified early the intervention services and support of a pediatrician is necessary.
• Development screening tools can be specific to a disorder (for example, autism), an area (for example, cognitive development, language, or gross motor skills), or they can be about development in general, addressing multiple areas of concern.
• If the screening test identifies a potential developmental problem, further developmental and medical evaluation is needed.
• Continental Hospitals have pediatric Interventionists who will monitor a child’s development comprehensively to identify any risks at an early stage, making it the best hospital for child care in Hyderabad.

Drug and alcohol use and abuse

• Recurrent use of alcohol or drugs (or both) in adolescents results in problems such as being unable to control the use of alcohol or drug, having poor health, poor school performance, change in a group of friends and withdrawal symptoms
• Parent counseling and inculcating healthy behavior in children can help adolescents in the long run.

Growth Plate Fractures

• Growth plates are discs of cartilage located at the end of long bones, the area of the bone where growth occurs in children and adolescents and a fracture could occur to accidents or falls. They are usually treated using a splint or cast, but some injuries may require surgery to ensure the best alignment for normal bone growth to continue.

Injury prevention

• Injury prevention is vital in children as it can cause death sometimes.
• Children have to be supervised and instructed to prevent injuries caused by fires (burnt by scalding or flames –cooking with care, fire alarms), drowning (having life jackets and learn live-saving skills), poisoning (household cleaners, medication, etc not to be kept unattended), falling (home safety devices, by sports injury, etc)

Management of chronic diseases in children

• Children with chronic illnesses may be ill or well at any given time.
• Chronic illness doesn’t just affect the child with the condition, but the entire family has to make major changes in schedules and priorities
• Management of chronic diseases in children involves support from family and friends both physically and mentally, keeping the children active, coordinating with the child’s school for their special needs.

Neurally mediated hypotension

• It is also known as fainting.
• It is most often treated with a combination of increased salt and water intake in conjunction with drugs that regulate blood pressure.

Obesity prevention and management

• Treatment for childhood obesity is based on the child’s age and if he or she has other medical conditions. Treatment usually includes changes in the child’s eating habits and physical activity level and sometimes might include medications or weight-loss surgery.

Osteomyelitis

• It is an infection in the bone that causes swelling and inflammation of the bone tissue. It usually affects children in the long bone in the arm (humerus) and legs (femur). Antibiotics are prescribed for treatment of this infection and sometimes surgery is required to remove parts of the bone or remove fluids that may have accumulated.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)

• In PCOS, the ovaries, sometimes, the cells that produce eggs within the ovaries fill up with fluid (cysts) instead and these cysts multiply. When this happens, the ovaries become enlarged and young women miss periods because no eggs are released, causing serious consequences.
• The treatment for PCOS in adolescents depends on each case and involves medication to regulate periods, acne and unwanted hair growth. Teenage girls are encouraged to lead a healthy lifestyle and lose weight.

Toe walking

• It is observed in children who walk on the balls of their feet with no contact between the heel and the ground.
• Treatment for persistent toe walking often involves a period of casting or bracing to help stretch the muscles and tendons in the calves and encourage a normal gait.

Sexually transmitted diseases

• They are caused by bacteria and fungi.
• Babies with infected mothers can have problems such as pneumonia, eye infections, and brain damage.
• Sexually transmitted diseases in teenagers are Human Papillomavirus (HPV), chlamydia, herpes simplex virus and trichomoniasi.
• These infectious diseases can be treated with the right medication such as antibiotics like azithromycin, erythromycin,doxycycline (for Chlamydia), Topical cream and solution preparations such as imiquimod, podophyllin, podofilox, fluorouracil (5-FU), trichloroacetic acid (TCA) (for HPV)

Shoulder disability

• When the shoulder joint becomes loose and leaves the socket, it is called shoulder dislocation or shoulder disability
• Our pediatricians in Continental Hospitals provide a combination of treatments such as restriction of movement of the shoulder, physiotherapy to prevent stiffness to the joints, icing, and medication to reduce inflammation and modification to the activities so that there is no further dislocation. Sometimes, our best child care doctors can do minimally invasive surgeries to repair damaged tissues based on the severity of the problem.