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Help Philadelphia Zoo Pick Name for Baby Orangutan

The Philadelphia Zoo is asking for your help in selecting a name for the zoo’s new baby orangutan.

The baby female orangutan was born October 2.  The mother is 17-year-old Tua, who came to Philadelphia from Zoo Atlanta, and the father is Sugl, 13.  Sugl was born at the Saint Louis Zoo.

Please choose one of the following three names chosen by the Zoo:

• Batu (islands off the coast of Sumatra)
• Kadoa (small gift); or
• Anoano (blessing).

Cast your vote before November 26 at Philadelphia Zoo.

         

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Experimental Vaccine Reduces Chances of Group B Strep Infections

Pregnant women carrying Group B strep bacteria may soon be able to reduce chances of passing along the bacteria to their babies if the vaccine is perfected and approved.

Group B strep bacteria is a leading cause of blood and brain infections in babies.  According to researchers, pregnant women who received the Group B Streptococcus vaccine in a recent study were about one-third less likely to carry the bacteria in the vagina.  The same group was 43 percent less likely to carry the bacteria in the gut.

The new study was presented at a Philadelphia meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America on Friday.

“It’s very exciting,” said Sharon Hillier of the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, who led the study.  “We’ve shown development and testing of such a vaccine is possible.”

This type of strep bacteria is different from Type A which causes “strep throat.”  Strep B is often discovered through routine testing of pregnant women.  When the bacteria is found, antibiotics can be administered through IV to reduce the likelihood of the baby being infected during the birth process.

Approximately one in every 2,000 babies born in the United States suffers from a disease related to Group B strep infection.  The infection is also at the root of many chronic illnesses in pregnant women and elderly people.

The research for this study was funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.  That organization falls under the umbrella of the National Institutes of Health.  Hillier believes that the vaccine benefits projected by this study are modest, but she is hopeful that it is enough to motivate the government and the medical industry to continue the research to develop a more effective vaccine to control Group B strep infections.

         

Hank Baskett Hoping For a Boy This Christmas

Philadelphia Eagles player Hank Baskett is hoping that his wife-to-be Kendra Wilkinson gives birth to a boy this Christmas.

Hank Baskett told E! that he hopes that the little baby on the way for him and his fiancee Kendra is a boy, so that he can look out for the baby girl that is coming next. Hank and Kendra have made it known that they want several children and this baby-to-be is only going to the first of many for their family.

Hank said, “I’ve always wanted, like, three. Well, at first I was like, I want two, but you say two and then there’s that ‘oops baby.’ So, now I’d like three.”

Baskett also said that with the couple’s wedding in the next week, he is trying to take the burden and stress off Kendra since she is pregnant. “You don’t want to be having a baby and have the wife all stressed,” he explains. “I am trying to take care of most of what I can …I want her to enjoy this wedding, because if she’s happy, I’m happy. That’s all that matters.”

Hank also makes it known that he is going to be taking an active role in Kendra’s pregnancy. He says, “there’s going to be some things I can’t make, but I’m going to try my hardest to be at every appointment, at every meeting, everything.”

Kendra is already earning Hank’s praise as a mother to their little one. “She’s telling me what do about every little thing. She’s reading, and I’ve seen more baby television shows since she got pregnant than I have in my entire life. She’s studying up on everything, and that’s why I have to keep my game up, to keep up with her because she’s constantly testing me and asking me questions.”

The downside to Kendra being pregnant now is that Hank has started football training in Philadelphia while Kendra remains in California. Hanks admits, “That’s one of the hardest things, to be across the country while she’s pregnant. I don’t want her in any way, shape or form to feel like she’s doing this by herself.”

         

US Hospitals report rise in shaken baby syndrome

Hospitals around the USA report seeing more than twice as many shaken babies as a year ago.

Hotlines for domestic violence reports have risen too, with more than half the callers saying their families’ financial situation has changed recently.

Across the United States, these and other signs point to another troubling effect of the recession: The American home is becoming more violent, and the ailing economy could be at least in part to blame.

“Our children and families are suffering,” said Alane Fagin, who runs a Long Island nonprofit group called Child Abuse Prevention Services. “With more layoffs expected, the threat of foreclosure looming over so many and our savings disappearing, even the best parents can feel stressed out and overwhelmed.”

Nationwide government data will not be compiled for months, so the evidence suggesting an uptick in child abuse and domestic violence has been largely anecdotal.

But the Child Welfare League of America, a coalition of public and private agencies, has been surveying state child welfare agencies to determine whether the numbers reflect a spike in violence.

“I think a lot of people are very concerned that we are in the early phases of this,” said Linda Spears, vice president for policy and public affairs.

Eighty-eight percent of law enforcement officials surveyed nationwide believe the economic crisis has led, or will lead, to more child abuse and neglect, according to top police officials from Los Angeles, Boston, Milwaukee and Philadelphia who recently held a news conference in Washington.

“Those of us on the front lines of law enforcement know that there is a correlation between economic distress and increased child abuse and neglect,” said Los Angeles Police Chief William Bratton. “We have to get in front of this problem now.”

Just as the need appears to be growing, the recession is drying up funding to many agencies that fight domestic violence.

“This period of time may well be our perfect storm: a struggling economy, an increase in stress and a decrease in funding of programs,” said Fagin, the Long Island child abuse prevention advocate.

Not everyone is convinced domestic violence and child abuse are increasing.

“So far from what I’ve read there is no evidence that is the case,” said Ben Tanzer of Chicago-based Prevent Child Abuse. “Certainly we’re concerned that certain communities may be in crisis, but we just don’t know.”

Earlier this month, the U.S. Administration for Children’s Services released its annual report on child abuse, which found the number of children being maltreated actually fell in recent years, from 904,000 victims nationwide in 2006 to 794,000 the following year.

But those figures do not include the worst of the recession, which began in late 2007. Still, additional signs abound that violence is rising:

_ The National Domestic Violence Hotline reported calls were up 21 percent in the third quarter of 2008 compared with a year earlier. A six-week survey found 54 percent of callers answering “yes” when asked if there had been a change in the family’s financial situation in the past year.

_ Milwaukee reported a 40 percent increase in homicides related to domestic violence in the first three months of 2009. Police Chief Edward Flynn cannot say for sure whether the increase was caused by the recession, but he believes the two are related.

_ The San Diego County Domestic Violence Hotline reported a 20 percent increase in calls in January 2009 over the prior year. “As the economy worsens, it’s likely that trend will get even worse,” District Attorney Bonnie M. Dumanis said.

_ The Women’s Center of San Joaquin County, Calif., says the number of clients seeking aid in obtaining restraining orders against abusers has increased 50 percent for the first three months of 2009, and counselors blame the economy. The county leads the nation in foreclosures.

_ Maine saw domestic violence-related homicides double in the past year. Gov. John Baldacci urged health care professionals to look even more carefully for signs of violence and sexual assault.

_ Just outside the nation’s capital, the number of abuse and neglect cases rose 23 percent in Fairfax County, Va.; 29 percent in Montgomery County, Md.; and 18 percent in the District of Columbia in 2008. Neglect investigations appear to have increased most, as struggling families live without heat or electricity or fail to get children medical care.

Amy Wicks, a spokeswoman with the National Center on Shaken Baby Syndrome, said her organization has received reports from pediatricians around the country concerned about a spike in cases.

“It’s not just shaken baby, it’s other forms of physical abuse,” Wicks said. “A lot of fathers, or male caregivers, have been laid off and now they’re home with the screaming baby. Sometimes the stress of a crying baby is just too much on top of everything else.”

Individual cases also raise questions about the role economic troubles may have played.

Police on Long Island were called last month to the home of an out-of-work stagehand arguing with his wife over money. After repeatedly punching her in the face in front of his house, the man barricaded himself inside with her and their seven children as hostage negotiators pleaded for their release.

The siege in East Rockaway ended after the man’s wife fled and he was tackled by police outside the house. The children were not harmed.

Days later in Stockton, Minn., a man held a 4-year-old hostage for about five hours before surrendering. A woman told police her husband was intoxicated and had become “verbally violent” with her, noting he was depressed about being laid off at a die-casting company.

Mindy Perlmutter, spokeswoman for the Nassau County Coalition for Domestic Violence, cautioned that the economy is not the only factor in abuse cases — a common refrain among social workers.

“It doesn’t cause someone to be abusive,” she said. “There are many poor people who never abuse their loved ones. But if you’re inclined to be abusive, if you are an abuser, losing a job and being home 24/7 may give you more opportunity.”

         

Visually Examining Newborns For Jaundice Won’t Predict Chances of Serious Illness

Pediatric researchers are saying that visually examining newborn babies for jaundice by noting the amount of yellowish skin is not very helpful in predicting chances of serious illness.

For many years, it has been believed by the medical society that the more yellowish a baby at birth is, the higher it’s chances of developing complications due to high levels of bilirubin.

The yellowish skin seen in infants with jaundice is due to a blood byproduct, bilirubin.

In extreme cases, high levels of bilirubin can result in Kernicterus, which may cause permanent brain damage, loss of hearing and neurological problems for the child.

Recent studies show that using visual signs, such as jaundice, to predict the levels of bilirubin in a baby, is inadequate.

According to the American Academy of Paediatrics, Neonatal jaundice affects up to 60 percent of newborns. In most cases, jaundice will disappear after the first couple of weeks once the baby’s liver is able to breakdown the excess bilirubin.

Over the last two decades, cases of Kernicterus have been increasing, leading to more professionals looking out for visual signs. If detected early, the baby can be treated with phototherapy, by exposing the body to ultraviolet rays to breakdown the levels of bilirubin.

Over 500 newborns, both late and preterm and of different races, were assessed in the study by Ron Keren - Paediatrician in The Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia.

Nurses graded the baby to rate the extent of jaundice. The infants were then examined using a non-invasive devise by a separate member of staff to measure the levels of bilirubin.

Results showed that the extent of jaundice could not be used to accurately predict a babies risk of developing illness due to bilirubin levels.