Samiksha Choithani

Usually the reactions stay for a few days after the vaccination. If your child has taken a vaccination in the past few days you can expect these reactions:<ul><li>Low-grade fever</li><li>Redness and Pain around the leg or arm where the vaccination was given</li><li>Slight swelling</li><li>Trouble in sleeping</li></ul> Here are some tips to ease the pain:<ul><li>Feeding works wonders when babies are in pain, breastfeeding more often after vaccination can help the baby keep hydrated and take the mind off from the pain.</li><li>Apply ice pack in the injected area, you can also soak a soft cotton cloth in cold water and place it on the injected area.</li><li>Swaddle the baby immediately after vaccination.</li><li>Swing them in arms.</li><li>Do not massage in the injected area for a few days.</li></ul> If the reactions persist for more than 2-3 days, it is better to consult your child's paediatrician.

Almost all vaccinations have mild reactions post vaccination; this means the vaccine is working.

Common reactions after vaccination

Alihusen Momin

Physical Deformity in another words are called physical abnormality; Birth Defect; Congenital Abnormality; Congenital Anomaly; Congenital Disorder; Congenital Defect. A congenital deformity or physical abnormality is a change in the normal size or shape of a body part caused by a condition that a baby is born with. Deformities can be:congenital: present at birthdevelopmental: appearing later in childhoodacquired: caused by injuries or illnesses that were not present at birthCommon congenital deformities include cleft lips and palates, clubfeet, spina bifida, and spinal deformities like scoliosis, kyphosis, and hyperlordosis. Most congenital deformities are caused by abnormal genetic coding, but some can be due to infections or environmental factors — such as alcohol abuse — that affect the mother and fetus during pregnancy. Congenital deformities can range from mild to severe. Mild deformities might not be visible or cause any symptoms. In severe cases, deformities can be readily apparent, cause pain, interfere with the movement and functioning of affected body parts, and negatively affect self-image. Treatment depends on the specific deformity and often includes surgery or the use of corrective devices like back braces and leg casts. Keep in MindMany congenital deformities can't be seen, won't cause any problems, and will never need treatment. Others respond very well to treatment, especially if it begins as soon as a doctor thinks a baby is ready for it. Cleft lips and palates, for example, can be corrected through surgery; and spinal deformities and clubfeet often can be successfully realigned through bracing and casting.

A congenital deformity or physical abnormality is a change in the normal size or shape of a body part caused by a condition that a baby is born with.

Physical Deformity in children

One way to make sure that your child is latching properly during feeding is by observing the following pattern in your baby’s stool during the first week after birth: <ul><li>1 day after birth – 1 wet diaper, greenish-black stool colour, stool smears</li><li>2 days after birth – 2 wet diapers, greenish-black stool colour, 1-2 stools</li><li>3 days after birth – 3 wet diapers, yellow and soft stool, 2-4 stools</li><li>4 days after birth – 4 wet diapers, yellow and soft stool, 3-5 stools</li><li>5 days after birth – 5 wet diapers, yellow and soft stool, 3-5 stools</li></ul> If you observe a similar pattern is similar, there is no need to worry. If that is not the case, there are ways to improve latching and efficiently feed your baby.

Improper latching leads to an underweight child. Hence it is important to make sure that your child is latched well.

Proper latching during breastfeeding

Ravina Sewani

In asthma, a person’s airways become inflamed, narrow and swell and produce extra mucus, which makes it difficult to breathe. If your child has asthma, their lungs and airways can easily get inflamed when they have a cold or are around things like pollen. Causes:<ul><li>Allergens: mould, pollen, animals</li><li>Irritants - cigarette smoke, air pollution, chemicals, odours</li><li>Weather: cold air, changes in weather</li><li>Stress: It can make your child short of breath and worsen their symptoms.</li><li>Airway Infections: This includes colds, pneumonia, and sinus infections.</li><li>Exercise</li></ul> Symptoms:<ul><li>A cough that doesn’t go away (this might be the only symptom sometimes)</li><li>Frequent coughing spells, especially during play or exercise, at night, in cold air, or while laughing or crying</li><li>A cough that gets worse after a viral infection</li><li>Less energy</li><li>Avoiding sports or social activities</li><li>Trouble sleeping because of coughing or breathing problems</li><li>Rapid breathing</li><li>Chest tightness or pain</li><li>Wheezing, a whistling sound when breathing in or out</li><li>Shortness of breath</li><li>Trouble eating, or grunting while eating (in infants)</li></ul> A severe asthma attack needs medical care right away. During severe asthma attack, watch for these signs:<ul><li>Stopping in the middle of a sentence to catch a breath</li><li>Using stomach muscles to breathe</li><li>Widened nostrils</li><li>Fast heartbeat</li><li>Sweating more than usual</li><li>Chest pain</li></ul>&nbsp;Risk Factors:<ul><li>Things that can make a child more likely to have asthma include:</li><li>Nasal allergies or eczema</li><li>A family history of asthma or allergies</li><li>Respiratory infections</li><li>Low birth weight</li><li>Exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke before or after birth.</li></ul> Diagnosis:<ul><li>Your child’s doctor will ask you a series of questions about medical history, symptoms, about any breathing problems your child may have had, family history of asthma, allergies, eczema, or other lung disease.</li><li>Physical exam: Your doctor will listen to your child's heart and lungs and look in their nose or eyes for signs of allergies.</li><li>Tests: Chest X-ray, allergy skin testing, blood tests</li></ul> Complications:<ul><li>Asthma can cause problems like:</li><li>Severe attacks, sometimes leading to ER visits or stays in the hospital</li><li>Fatigue</li><li>Stress, anxiety, and depression</li><li>Delays in growth or puberty</li><li>Damaged airways and lung infections</li><li>Death</li></ul> Treatment:<ul><li>There are two main types of asthma medications:</li><li>Quick-relief medication that help with sudden symptoms. Your child’s doctor will prescribe these for fast help during an asthma attack.</li><li>Long-acting medication that prevent airway inflammation and keep asthma under control. Your child’s doctor will probably ask your child to take these every day.</li><li>Children under 4 may be prescribed to take their medications through an asthma nebuliser. This device changes the medicine from a liquid to a mist that your child can breathe into their lungs. The doctor will tell you how often to give these breathing treatments. To use the nebuliser:</li></ul>Wash your hands.Put the medicine in the nebuliser.Connect the tubes from the compressor to the base.Attach the mouthpiece or mask.Turn the compressor on and watch for a light mist to come from the nebuliser.Put the mask on your child’s face, or put the mouthpiece in their mouth and have them close their lips around it.Have them breathe in and out until their treatment time is up.Turn the nebuliser off when the medicine is gone.Have your child cough to clear out any mucus. Prevention:<ul><li>To prevent asthma attacks or to keep them from getting worse, focus on known triggers with steps like these:</li><li>Don’t let anyone smoke near your child.</li><li>Clean bedding and carpets often to fight dust mites.</li><li>Keep pets out of your child’s bedroom.</li><li>Fix leaks and use dehumidifiers to prevent mould.</li><li>Don’t use scented cleaning products or candles.</li><li>Check daily air quality reports in your area.</li><li>Help your child stay at a healthy weight.</li><li>If exercise is a trigger, your child’s doctor might give them medicine to help keep their airways open during activity.</li><li>Make sure they get a flu shot every year.</li></ul>

Here are Asthma Symptoms, Causes, Diagnosis, Risk factors, Treatment, Prevention, and Complications.

All about Asthma

Dengue fever is a disease caused by a virus. This virus lives in mosquitoes. The virus can cause fever, headaches, rashes, and pain throughout the body. Most cases of dengue fever are mild and go away on their own after about a week. When a mosquito infected by dengue virus bites a person, the person can get affected by dengue fever. The virus can't spread directly from person to person. In rare cases, dengue fever can lead to a more serious form of the disease called dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF). DHF can be life-threatening and needs to be treated right away. It can be fatal sometimes. Common signs and symptoms of dengue fever include:<ul><li>Symptoms of dengue fever are generally mild in younger children and those who have the disease for the first time.</li><li>High fever, possibly as high as 105°F (40°C)</li><li>Pain behind the eyes and in the joints, muscles and/or bones</li><li>Severe headache</li><li>Pink rashes over most of the body</li><li>Mild bleeding from the nose or gums</li></ul>Symptoms can start anywhere from 4 days to 2 weeks after being bitten by an infected mosquito, and typically last for 2 to 7 days. Diagnosis: If you think your child might have dengue fever, call a doctor right away. You should also call a doctor if your child has recently been to a region that has dengue fever and has a fever or severe headache. The doctor will ask about your child's medical history and recent travels, and send a blood sample for testing. Treatment:No specific treatment is available for dengue fever. Mild cases are managed with lots of fluids to prevent dehydration and getting plenty of rest. Pain relieving medicines can ease the headaches and pain associated with dengue fever. Most cases of dengue fever go away within a week or two and won't cause any lasting problems. If someone has severe symptoms of the disease, or if symptoms get worse in the first day or two, seek immediate medical care. Prevention:<ul><li>There's no vaccine to prevent dengue fever. The best protection is to prevent bites by an infected mosquito. Be sure to:</li><li>Use screens (mosquito nets) on doors and windows, and promptly repair broken or damaged screens. Keep doors and windows shut.</li><li>Have kids wear long-sleeved shirts, long pants, shoes, and socks when they go outside.</li><li>Use insect repellent as directed on kids.</li><li>Limit the amount of time kids spend outside during the day, especially in the hours around dawn and dusk, when mosquitoes are most active.</li><li>Keep surroundings clean. Mosquitoes breed easily when there is water around. They lay their eggs in water, so get rid of unclean water around you.</li></ul> Natural Remedies for Dengue Fever:<ul><li>Drink sufficient Water</li><li>Juice of Papaya Leaves</li><li>Chew Basil Leaves</li><li>Neem Leaves</li><li>Orange Juice</li></ul>

Here are Dengue Symptoms, Causes, Treatment, Prevention, Diagnosis, and Remedies.

All about dengue

<ul><li>Allergic Rhinitis is a type of inflammation in the nose following an exposure to the pollen or inhalation of indoor allergens like mould, pet dander, dust mites, dried skin flakes, or smoke.</li><li>As a preventive measure, you may reduce your child's exposure to the outdoor allergens and provide a clean environment free from indoor allergens.</li><li>The symptoms of allergic rhinitis are similar to common cold like runny nose, sneezing, nasal congestion, nose/eye itching, and teary eyes.</li><li>Allergic Rhinitis can develop in children as early as 18 months.</li><li>In the case of Allergic Rhinitis, your child’s doctor can prescribe either antihistamines or decongestants.</li></ul>

Allergic rhinitis is a severe allergic reaction against allergens.

Allergic Rhinitis

Palak Vyas

Preterm birth usually affects a child's respiratory system and brain development. The effects of preterm birth on a baby’s development depend on how early the baby was born before its full term. Preterm birth can have short term and long term effects on a child’s development. Short term effects of preterm birth:<ul><li>Preterm babies are born with serious breathing problems. Sometimes they have to be put on ventilators to breathe.</li><li>These babies are at higher risks of developing asthma in the later stage of life.</li><li>As mentioned earlier, they are likely to develop brain impairments, because the brain is the last major organ to develop even after birth. So when the baby is prematurely born, its brain has to keep growing in an abnormal environment that is outside the womb. So even though the brain develops post-birth, for premature babies, the development is slow as they have spent less time inside the womb.</li><li>In short, the kind of growth that happens easily inside the womb is difficult for preemies outside the womb.</li></ul> Long term effects of preterm birth:<ul><li>Life-long effects include cerebral palsy, mental retardation, visual and hearing impairments, and poor health.</li><li>Babies, who are born a few weeks early, say at 34-36 weeks, may have behavioural, social and emotional problems.</li><li>They are likely to develop learning difficulties.</li><li>Increased risk of ADHD</li><li>Increased risk of SIDS</li><li>Chronic diseases such as heart disease, hypertension and diabetes.</li><li>The other important thing to keep in mind is the birth weight. The less your baby weighed when (s)he was born, the more likely (s)he is to have health problems that could affect his/her growth. Mostly the preemies born with very less weight than normal a child are kept in the hospital under observation. First year can be a bit problematic but gradually they cope up.</li></ul> The other general effects found in preemies are:<ul><li>They may look different than full term babies.</li><li>Their bones and muscles are fragile. In the last few weeks of pregnancy, lots of minerals like calcium and phosphorus needed for baby’s growth are transferred from mother to baby. And because premature babies are born before full term, they cannot get enough of these minerals. They need extra care while handling.</li><li>Language development may be delayed. These babies might have more trouble speaking and understanding the language.</li><li>Their teeth may develop abnormally or may have late teething than full-term babies.</li><li>There are chances of vision impairment, squint eyes, farsightedness or nearsightedness.</li></ul>

Premature babies are prone to more health risks than full-term babies.

Effects of preterm birth on growth and development of babies

Normally babies cry after the injection because the prick of the injection is painful for a baby. The doctors usually advise the parents to give paracetamol to reduce the pain so the child can have some relief. Keep the following in mind to soothe your child after injection:<ul><li>Stay near your baby to distract and calm him/her during injection.</li><li>Hold your baby in a position so that the doctor can easily give injections.</li><li>If your baby is under 6 months, use a sugar solution to pacify him/her. You can dip his/her pacifier in a sugar solution and let him/her suck it.</li><li>Distract your baby with lights, sounds or some new toy.</li><li>After the injection, rub the vaccination site gently.</li><li>Swaddling can be helpful for little babies.</li><li>Place your baby on one side or on the stomach.</li><li>Swing him/her in your arms.</li><li>Feed your baby.</li><li>Apply cold compress at the site of injection.</li></ul>

Injections are painful for children so they tend to get cranky post one.

Soothing your baby after injection

When moms start feeding the newborns, the nipple often turns red and pointy instead of round and smooth. This could be due to the problem in latching technique, insert your finger into the corner of your baby's mouth to stop feeding for a while when you feel pain -- and then try latching on again. Ideally, your baby should take at least one inch of your areola (entire circle surrounding the nipple) into the mouth. Measures to treat sore nipples:<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">When you take bath, clean the area with water and do not apply any soap. Your areola secretes oil that keeps your nipples moist. If you use soaps, these protective oils might be removed.&nbsp;Air-dry your nipples and do not rub them harsh. There is no need to clean your breasts before breastfeeding, offer your breasts as such. The microbes on your breast surface will help in the development of your baby's gut bacteria. You need to only clean your breasts before feeding if you have an infection.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Apply few breast milk drops. Massage a few drops of breastmilk before and after the feed to heal your nipples.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Your doctor might sometimes prescribe you creams to apply on your nipples.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">If you need instant relief after nursing, use hydrogel pads.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Sometimes the pain is also due to blocked milk duct, massage your breasts with warm water. This will help to unplug ducts and clear the lumps, milk gets released and there is a relief in pain. Note that breastfeeding is the best way to unclog ducts, do not stop breastfeeding due to the pain.</li></ul> These are only temporary relief solutions. You will have to work on the cause of your soreness like poor latch or baby's tongue tie etc. A lactation consultant will be able to help you better. Some women face nipple structural challenges as well. Some of them have flat nipples or very large nipples. In any case, there is no need to worry as generally newborns can nurse on all types of nipple structures. Just ensure that there is a proper latch during the breastfeeding and that the baby is gaining adequate weight. However, here are a few things which might help you if you are facing a lot of trouble:<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">If you inverted nipples, they will naturally protrude out as the pregnancy progresses. Even if this does not happen, your baby will be able to latch on and feed properly. If the baby is facing some troubles, a nipple shield will be very helpful in this case. Consult your doctor or a breastfeeding specialist to help you accustom to the use of nipples.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">If you have flat nipples, they will raise with stimulation. If they don't, do not worry as long as your baby holds on to the areola apart from nipples. If along with flat nipples, you have engorged breasts, your baby might struggle with the latch. In this case, use your fingers to pull the nipple towards your baby's mouth. Your doctor might suggest you to use breast pumps in this case.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">If you have large nipples, it will take your baby a few days to have a proper latch. But if you have adequate milk supply, your baby will get enough milk and gain wait adequately. You can try football hold if you have large nipples.</li></ul>

Breastfeeding can sometimes get overwhelming, not just emotionally, but physically too. Nipple care is very important for the first few months of feeding.

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