Images courtesy of Paul Kuntz
Mark Ciesielski, father of patient
I adopted my daughter, Sara, when she was 18 months old. For most of her childhood Sara was a fairly healthy child. Then in late 2014, I noticed a few, small red spots (petechiae) on her upper body. Sara developed a series of spiked fevers. She seemed to recover quickly with overnight rest, but began to take more afternoon naps, which was unusual for her.
In early 2015, right before Sara’s 16th birthday, I received a phone call from the school nurse. Sara had a very high heart rate and was having difficulty breathing. I...
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When it comes to leading a healthier life for you and your children, we’ve all heard this generic advice – eat better, exercise more. For some reason, this hasn’t broken my habit of making no-bake cookies whenever I need a sugar fix. Please, don’t tell anyone my secret! I’m board-certified in obesity medicine, and it might hurt my image …
Seriously, all jokes aside (although those cookies are no joke), I’ve sadly seen similar frustrations over and over again from families struggling to help their child get to a...
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We’re officially out of summer and into autumn! Labor Day marked the closing of most neighborhood pools and water parks until next year, but swim season in Houston is far from over. In fact, the summer heat will linger for many more weeks. Thankfully, home pools never close. Even though home pools and spas are a wonderful way to beat the Houston heat, they’re not free of danger.
Drowning is the most common cause of injury-related death in children ages 1 to 4, and the majority of these submersion fatalities...
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Do you know any of the leading causes of death among children? In the United States, unintentional injury from motor vehicle (car) crashes makes the top of the list. In 2015, approximately 1,346 children under the age of 15 were killed in motor vehicle crashes. That’s more than three children per day.
To make matters more heartbreaking – many of these deaths are completely preventable. In fact, securing children in age- and size-appropriate car seats and using seat belts cuts their chances of serious...
Images courtesy of Maya Cooper
I’m Kennedy Cooper and I have sickle cell disease, or SCD. It hasn’t always been easy, and it hasn’t always been fun, but my job is to tell you everything.
Do you know what SCD is? Let me explain before we get started. To put it simply, SCD is a group of inherited disorders where the red blood cells are sickle-shaped and broken down. SCD can’t be developed, and it’s not contagious. These cells are inflexible and can easily cause clotting. This can bring pain and complications...