Pediatrics blog
Clinical teaching and practical ideas for your next study session.
Van Wyk–Grumbach Syndrome: When Extreme TSH May Mimic FSH
A focused board-prep guide to the proposed FSH-receptor cross-activation by extreme TSH in profound primary hypothyroidism—and how to explain the mechanism without equating shared subunits with identical hormones.
When a Teen Mentions Pain Pills: Build an Adult-Controlled Safety Plan
If a teen’s mention of pain pills raises concern for suicide, a vague promise to lock up medications is not enough. Learn to build and verify a caregiver-led plan that makes medicines inaccessible while keeping suicide-risk assessment in view.
Pediatric Anaphylaxis: The Five-Minute Epinephrine Decision
When a child is still wheezing and hypotensive five minutes after IM epinephrine, repeat the dose and support circulation in parallel. Learn when to escalate further.
Pediatric Crohn vs UC MCQs: Rank the Clue, Not the Diagnosis
A granuloma can be the strongest Crohn-versus-UC discriminator in an MCQ without being a required Crohn finding. Learn to rank clues, avoid overcalling, and retrieve the distinction.
How Oxygen Toxicity Disrupts Lung Development in Preterm Infants
Why can life-saving oxygen contribute to BPD? Follow the mechanism from reactive oxygen species to inflammatory injury, impaired alveolar septation, and altered pulmonary vascular growth—while keeping oxygen toxicity in its proper, multifactorial context.
Pediatric Epiglottitis Extubation: Don’t Let the Cuff Leak Decide
For a child recovering from epiglottitis, a missing cuff leak is a risk signal—not an automatic veto. Weigh clinical recovery, breathing readiness, airway assessment, and a credible rescue plan.
Severe BPD on Pediatrics Boards: Counsel About Risk Without Overclaiming
Practice describing the long-term risks linked to severe BPD without turning population-level associations into predictions about one child.
Neonatal Oxygenation Index: Why PaO₂ Needs Ventilator Context
The same PaO₂ can reflect very different degrees of respiratory failure depending on FiO₂ and mean airway pressure. Learn how oxygenation index puts arterial oxygenation in support context—and why it cannot identify the cause.
Bronchiolitis With a New High Fever: When to Reopen the Pneumonia Differential
A new high fever and persistent focal lung findings should reopen—not settle—the pneumonia question in bronchiolitis. Learn when chest radiography can help and why an opacity alone should not trigger antibiotics.
Preterm Ventilation SAQ: Oxygen and CO₂ Targets Without False Precision
Practice a board-ready preterm ventilation answer: state the SpO₂ goal, qualify permissive hypercapnia by postnatal age and pH, and avoid claiming these targets prevent BPD.
Normal Initial Skeletal Survey: Why Repeat Imaging Matters
A negative first skeletal survey describes what was visible on that study—not necessarily every injury. Learn how timing, fracture type, and image quality shape the decision to repeat imaging.
Persistent Tachypnea in Pediatric Asthma: When Albuterol May Raise Lactate
When a child’s air entry and work of breathing improve but tachypnea persists, beta-agonist–associated lactate may be part of the picture. Learn how to reassess obstruction and perfusion without reflexively escalating bronchodilators.