Hospital for Sick Children

About: Hospital for Sick Children is a healthcare organization based out in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Medicine. The organization has 4097 authors who have published 3746 publications receiving 129066 citations. The organization is also known as: Sick Kids Hospital & SickKids.

Identification of risk genes for autism spectrum disorder through copy number variation analysis in Austrian families

Abstract: Autism or autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a range of neurodevelopmental disorders starting in early childhood and is characterized by impairments in communication and reciprocal social interaction and presence of restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior. The contribution of genetic factors to autism is clear in twin and family studies. It is apparent that, overall, ASD is a complex non-Mendelian disorder. Recent studies suggest that copy number variations (CNVs) play a significant role in the etiology of ASD. For the current work, we recruited 245 family members from 73 ASD families from Styria, Austria. The DNA from probands was genotyped with Affymetrix single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) 6.0 microarrays to screen for CNVs in their genomes. Analysis of the microarray data was performed using three different algorithms, and a list of stringent calls was compared to existing CNV data from over 2,357 controls of European ancestry. For stringent calls not present in controls, quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) was used to validate the CNVs in the probands and in their family members. Twenty-two CNVs were validated from this set (five of which are apparently de novo), many of which appear likely to disrupt genes that may be considered as good candidates for neuropsychiatric disorders, including DLG2, S100B, ARX, DIP2A, HPCAL1, and GPHN. Several others disrupt genes that have previously been implicated in autism, such as BDNF, AUTS2, DPP6, and C18orf22, and our data add to the growing evidence of their involvement in ASD.

Use of microencapsulated iron(II) fumarate sprinkles to prevent recurrence of anaemia in infants and young children at high risk

Abstract: OBJECTIVE: To compare the effectiveness of microencapsulated iron(II) fumarate sprinkles (with and without vitamin A), iron(II) sulfate drops, and placebo sprinkles in preventing recurrence of anaemia and to determine the long-term haematological outcomes in children at high risk of recurrence of anaemia 12 months after the end of supplementation. METHODS: A prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled design was used to study 437 Ghanaian children aged 8-20 months who were not anaemic (haemoglobin > or = 100 g/l). Four groups were given microencapsulated iron(II) fumarate sprinkles, microencapsulated iron(II) fumarate sprinkles with vitamin A, iron(II) sulfate drops or placebo sprinkles daily for six months. Primary outcome measures were change in haemoglobin and anaemic status at baseline and study end. Non-anaemic children at the end of the supplementation period were reassessed 12 months after supplementation ended. FINDINGS: Overall, 324 children completed the supplementation period. Among the four groups, no significant changes were seen in mean haemoglobin, ferritin or serum retinol values from baseline to the end of the supplementation period. During the trial, 82.4% (267/324) of children maintained their non-anaemic status. Sprinkles were well accepted without complications. At 12 months post-supplementation, 77.1% (162/210) of children with no intervention remained non-anaemic. This proportion was similar for children among the four groups. CONCLUSION: In most children previously treated for anaemia, further supplementation was not needed to maintain their non-anaemic status. These results may have important implications for community intervention programmes in which initial high-dose treatment is needed because of a high prevalence of anaemia.

Reading after closed head injury in childhood: Effects on accuracy, fluency, and comprehension.

Abstract: Two studies of reading decoding, reading fluency, and reading comprehension after childhood head injury are reported. Study 1 tested whether age at head injury and the type of contusional brain damage were related to reading outcomes. Fifty-five children with head injuries were tested on measures of word decoding accuracy and reading comprehension. Children who sustained head injuries in the preschool years before basic word decoding skills are acquired or in the early primary grades when decoding skills are being taught, and children with bilateral or left-sided contusions were most at risk for difficulties in acquiring basic word decoding and reading comprehension skills. In particular, children injured before 61/2 years of age were most at risk for difficulties in acquiring reading decoding skills in comparison to children injured after this age. Study 2 tested whether deficits in processing speed after head injury are also found in reading. Forty-three head-injured children were matched with controls on a pair-by-pair basis for age, grade, and word decoding accuracy. The children with head injuries were slower at naming words, particularly those with less common orthographic patterns, although the groups did not differ on speeded naming of pronounceable nonwords. Reading fluency in the head-injured group was related to reading comprehension, suggesting that slow word-level processing has negative consequences for text comprehension in these individuals. The results are discussed with respect to how head injuries affect the development of skills yet to be acquired and the further acquisition of those skills that are in a rapid phase of development at time of injury. The results are also discussed with reference to models of how head injury affects speeded processing.

Thyroid cancer in childhood: a retrospective review of childhood course.

Abstract: Background: Thyroid cancer (TC) is an uncommon childhood malignancy, but the incidence may be increasing. Recent American Thyroid Association guidelines focus primarily on adult data. Natural histo...