Most parents are very familiar with the difficult task of keeping a baby's bottom clean and dry.  Frequent contact with urine and feces makes the diaper-area skin prone to irritation and infection.  Most diaper rashes are caused by chemical irritation from stools and and urine.  Less common causes of diaper area rashes include yeast or bacterial infection of the skin, allergy, or vitamin deficiency.  Some infants may be sensitive to diaper materials, soaps or chemicals in baby wipes.  Baby anatomy in the diaper area leads to an amazing number of creases and crevices which are difficult to keep clean.  Most diaper rashes can be treated with cleaning, drying, moisture barrier ointments, or powders.

Kids climb, jump, bounce, skip, slide, hit, skidaddle, run, hurdle, hurl, ride, slip and boogy!  It is no wonder muscle injuries in kids are common.  So, is there a broken bone?  Should I see my doctor?  Strains and sprains typically represent mild injuries of muscles, ligaments and tendons.  It is often difficult to determine the extent of the injury without an evaluation by a physician or X-rays.  Mild ligament injuries involving abnormal motion of a joint are called sprains.  Ligaments are the fibrous bands that connect bones to other bones.  Strains involve mild injury to a muscle/tendon unit.  Tendons connect muscles to bones.  Most strains and sprains can be treated with ice, elevation and pain medications.  Some more serious injuries require splints or braces to immobilize the joint.  Severe injury may require surgery.

"Does my child have a tapeworm?"  This is a surprisingly common question in my Pediatric Gastroenterology clinic.  The simple answer... if you live in the United States and don't have pet pigs or cows, then probably "No."  Tapeworm infection is more common in some underdeveloped areas of the world, especially in Central America, Africa, India, Southeast Asia and China.  A common misconception is that tapeworm infection is a common cause of weight loss in North American children.  It is true that severe tapeworm infection can cause some symptoms (usually mild) such as weight loss, diarrhea, and abdominal pain.  Most children with tapeworm infection have few or no symptoms!  Tapeworm infection is typically diagnosed with the passage of  worm segments (proglottids) in the stool.  These may look like a roll of stamps (several proglottids or an entire tapeworm), or a tan, flat, rubbery square piece of tissue (a single worm segment).  Tapeworm infection is typically caused by the beef tapeworm (Taenia saginata) or the pig tapeworm (Taenia solium) and is easy to treat and cure with oral medicines.