Eating and feeding disorders in pediatric age

Eating and feeding disorders are common in pediatric age and may be important to discover and recover the early symptoms in order to optimize the treatment and management

Motor skills in children with primary headache: A pilot case-control study

Background: Headache is the most common painful manifestation in the developmental age, often accompanied by severe disability such as scholastic absenteeism, low quality of academic performance and compromised emotional functioning. The aim of the study is to evaluate praxic abilities in a population of children without aural migraine. Materials and methods: The test population consists of 10 subjects without migraine without aura (MwA), (8 Males) (mean age 8.40, SD ± 1.17) and 11 healthy children (7 Males) (mean age 8.27; SD ± 1.10; p = 0.800). All subjects underwent evaluation of motor coordination skills through the Battery for Children Movement Assessment (M-ABC). Results: The two groups (10 MwA vs 11 Controls) were similar for age (8.40 ± 1.17 vs 8.27 ± 1.10; p = 0.800), sex (p = 0.730), and BMI (p = 0.204). The migraine subjects show an average worse performance than the Movement ABC; specifically, migraineurs show significantly higher total score values (31.00 ± 23.65 vs 4.72 ± 2.61; p = 0.001), manual dexterity (12.10 ± 11.20 vs 2.04 ± 2.65; p = 0.009) and balance (14.85 ± 10.08 vs. 1.04 ± 1.05; p <0.001). The mean percentile of migraine performance is significantly reduced compared to controls (9.00 ± 3.82 vs 51.00 ± 24.34, p <0.001) (Table 1). Conclusion: Migraine can alter many cognitive and executive functions such as motor skills in developmental age

Older Adults’ Access to Care during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Results from the LOckdown and LifeSTyles (LOST) in Lombardia Project

The COVID-19 pandemic disproportionally affected older people in terms of clinical outcomes and care provision. We aimed to investigate older adults’ changes in access to care during the pandemic and their determinants. We used data from a cross-sectional study (LOST in Lombardia) conducted in autumn 2020 on a representative sample of 4400 older adults from the most populated region in Italy. Lifestyles, mental health, and access to healthcare services before and during the pandemic were collected. To identify factors associated with care delays, reduction in emergency department (ED) access, and hospitalisations, we estimated prevalence ratios (PR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) using multivariable log-binomial regression models. During the pandemic, compared to the year before, 21.5% of the study population increased telephone contacts with the general practitioner (GP) and 9.6% increased self-pay visits, while 22.4% decreased GP visits, 12.3% decreased outpatient visits, 9.1% decreased diagnostic exams, 7.5% decreased ED access, and 6% decreased hospitalisations. The prevalence of care delays due to patient’s decision (overall 23.8%) was higher among men (PR 1.16, 95% CI 1.05–1.29), subjects aged 75 years or more (PR 1.12, 95% CI 1.00–1.25), and those with a higher economic status (p for trend < 0.001). Participants with comorbidities more frequently cancelled visits and reduced ED access or hospitalisations, while individuals with worsened mental health status reported a higher prevalence of care delays and ED access reductions. Access to care decreased in selected sub-groups of older adults during the pandemic with likely negative impacts on mortality and morbidity in the short and long run

Neuropsychomotricity in water: A new rehabilitative tool for neruodevelop-mental disorders

Neuropsychomotricity in water is a rehabilitative practice that avails itself just of the liquid element, as a mediator of relationships: in water yes they upset all dynamics, be they relational, of equilibrium, of movement and perception, due to the fact that proprioceptive sensations, created by bodily contact with water, they are different than those generated by contact with air

Animals-assisted therapy: A brief review

In rehabilitative setting, the presence of animals can be considered as an important stimulus for verbal and social communication, and for mood regulation. Interaction with an animal is beneficial for children's development and numerous psychological tests have revealed that growing up with pets has a beneficial effect on children's self-esteem and self-confidence, can improve empathy, a sense of responsibility and cognitive development, as well as social status within the peer group

Visuospatial skills in children affected by primary nocturnal enuresis: Rehabilitative proposals

The sphincterial control problems in childhood are very common, with relevant comorbidities (i.e.: difficulty in academic performance, sleep disturbances, minor neurological signs) involved in the complex process of maturation and learning, such as to cause a great deal of discomfort and related disorders in affected subjects. Enuresis is characterized by the involuntary urination in the absence of a physical disorder, socially unacceptable in places and at one stage of life where such control is acquired by the majority of subjects (about 5 years). The present study aims to evaluate the visuospatial skills in children affected by primary monosymptomatic nocturnal enuresis (PMNE). 31 PMNE children (16 males and 15 females) (mean age 10.87, SD ± 1.68) and 61 healthy children (32 males, 29 females) (mean age 11.03, SD ± 1.85, p = 0687) were evaluated for visuomotor skills with the Visual-Motor Integration Scale (VMI). PMNE subjects show a worse performance on average to VMI, especially in the total visual-motor integration test. This finding emphasizes the importance of a framework for global and more complex than is commonly implemented, across the border but framing the subject of enuretic symptoms in a more global perspective

Psychopathological and psychodynamic hypotheses for pediatric stuttering

Stuttering is a common language alteration in pediatric age consisting in repetitions and blocks, which entail a break in the rhythm and melody of the speech. According to the WHO it is a disorder of the rhythm of the word, the subject knows precisely what he would like to say, but at the same time he is not able to say it. It is a great inconvenience for those affected, also because the slowing down of speaking is not about thought or cognitive skills