Childhood Illness

Mumps is caused by a virus, and it is passed on in the same way as a cold. Read more information about this virus.

Hemangiomas can more easily be observed by your child's pediatrician and a referral made if the diagnosis is in question, if the hemangiomas are medically problematic, or if you are in need of further reassurance.

The symptoms of Osgood-Schlatter disease include pain over the bump just below your knee cap, usually worsened by exercise that involves repeated bending and straightening of the knee and by the direct force on that area.

Although there is an increased risk of post-vaccination seizures after DTP, there is no evidence that pertussis immunization causes permanent brain damage or epilepsy.

Winter colds, ear infections, tubes, hearing, and speech -- these are very, very common concerns for parents and physicians alike.

RSV is the most common cause of bronchiolitis (infection of the small air tubes of the lungs) and pneumonia (infection in the lung tissue) in young infants and children.

Antibiotics are not necessary for all infections, and they have unfortunately been overprescribed.

When a child has asthma and an egg allergy, the flu shot may not be advisable. Consult with your child's doctor.

Assuming your child has been healthy up to this point, there is little reason to think that shingles indicates a problem with her immune system.

The many kids who attend child care share their bodily fluids (saliva, for example) and tend to have increased exposure to germs.

Skin conditions such as eczema, psoriasis, and seborrhea are very common in young children. Find out what to do.

Find out how to choose the right medicine for a cold.

It's wiser to give a child the vaccine than to wait to see if he catches the chickenpox, which sometimes has complications.

Chickenpox can be spread to someone who hasn't had it, from 24 hours prior to the first appearance of the rash until the rash crusts over, which is a variable number of days.

It is easy to confuse chicken pox with insect bites, a reaction of the skin to something it came in contact with, or other causes of rash.

During the winter months, Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) and influenza (flu) are widespread among children, especially in the first two years of life.

The chickenpox vaccine is thought to be safe for healthy children.

Our expert addresses a mother's concern that her four-year-old gets sick more than he should.