The duration of episodes of depression vary widely, but generally no treatment is that last about six months, but occasionally may persist for 2-3 years.

Children who have suffered an episode of depression may return to repeat it more often in the 2 years after the first episode. Even without a new episode of depression in full, it is not uncommon to have any of depressive symptoms.

How is it diagnosed?

The diagnosis of this disease, currently, is largely based on the presence of the symptoms discussed. There are some interviews, questionnaires or psychological tests that can help make the diagnosis.

Have also been used, though still inconclusive, laboratory tests (determination of certain hormones that may appear altered in children with depression, such as growth hormone) and the realization of electroencephalogram during sleep (brain activity recorded during dream that has some characteristic abnormalities in depressed children).What is the treatment?

Children with depression should be tested and treated by the psychiatrist. Depression is treated with antidepressant drugs and some procedures of psychotherapy, games, conversations, meetings, etc. Psychotherapy is especially important in addition to depression, the child has anxiety disorders or conduct.

What is the major complication?

In addition to altering the normal life of the child, depression can lead to suicide or attempted suicide. Many children who commit suicide or have tried, have shown a depressive disorder, with constant concern about death, death wishes, feelings of worthlessness and hopelessness.

The threats and suicide attempts should always be taken seriously because it is the way in which the child expresses his despair, mocking their threats or ridicule is the best way to encourage him to commit suicide for real. Before a suicide, often have existed prior threats or attempts.

Depression is a mood disorder and feelings that are characterized by loss of interest and enjoyment of usual activities, changes in appetite and excess or deficiency, insomnia or excessive sleeping, nervousness or lack of wins, the feeling of uselessness and excessive guilt, decreased ability to think and concentrate on ideas repeated death.

This disease can occur at any age in childhood, although it is far more common and generally more serious in adolescence. About 3-5% of adolescents have symptoms of depression, being more common in girls.

What is the cause?

It is not known with certainty the cause of depression, although it is thought that may have a genetic (inherited).

It is much more common in children depression when there is a close relative, parent or sibling with the disease or other major disruption of feelings. It is believed that in these families is inherited from a minor operation of any substance in the brain that act as transmitters of signals (norepinephrine and serotonin).

Other researchers believe, however, that depression occurs in the environment in which the child or adult lives, the lack of positive reinforcement to their activities, poor social skills, learned helplessness, self-control problems and stress daily life.

How does it manifest?

The symptoms of this disease are highly dependent on the child’s age:

* Infant: children under 1 year may have depression, the best known is the one that appears when an infant 6-7 months is separated from its closest caregiver, usually a parent, this protest initially ( cries, look, you panic and limb movements continuously) and then search among all adult caregivers, rejecting them.

In the end the child is sad, listless, cries in silence staring into space and when it catches them in his arms to comfort him, looking back to your mother or father and not finding it embraces the stranger, still sobbing, not consoles.

* Older children have sadness, crying easily, irritability, withdrawal from activities they once liked and eating disorders and sleep. Many depressed children also have trouble (episodes of unwarranted fear and oppression) and behavioral changes (rebellion, aggression, etc.)..

Vision and hearing

Consideration should be given before your child begins to attend school, when you have about 3 or 4 years old. Also you may need to be screened from view as it grows. Some experts recommend that hearing tests be made from the 3 or 4 years old.

If at any age your child has any of the warning signs of problems with vision or hearing, which are presented below, talk with your healthcare provider about it.

Symptoms of vision problems

_____ Eyes deviate inward (crossed) or outward.
_____ Strabismus (frowned when he tries to do something).
Headaches _____.
_____ Not play as well in school.
_____ Blurred vision or double.

Symptoms of hearing problem

_____ Does not respond adequately to a noise or a voice.
_____ Slow development of language and speech.
_____ Abnormal pronunciation.

Special note: Listen to music at high volume, especially with headphones, you can permanently damage your child’s ear.

Other tests

Maybe your children need checkups to prevent health problems. The following tests are common:

Review of anemia (blood)-Your child needs to be tested for anemia when it’s baby (usually near the date on which turns one year old). Children may also need to have this test as they grow. Some children are more likely to suffer from anemia than others. Ask your health care provider about this test.

Cholesterol test (blood) “It’s possible that children (under 2 years of age and older) may need this exam, especially if they have a parent with high cholesterol, or if a parent or grandparent has had heart disease before 55 years of age. If you do not have a family medical history, your child may need to be tested if they are obese or have high blood pressure.

TB skin test, children may need this test if they have had close contact with someone who has TB, if they live in a region where TB is more common than average (like in a Native American reservation, a homeless shelter or an institution), or have recently immigrated from Central America, South America or the Caribbean.

Blood tests newborn

These blood tests should be done before your baby is 7 days old. Are usually done before the baby leaves the hospital. If blood tests were performed earlier than 24 hours from birth, it is recommended to repeat when the baby is 1-2 weeks of age. Among the neonatal screening are the most common PKU, thyroid deficiency and sickle cell anemia.

Blood pressure

The children’s blood pressure should be checked when they are about 3 years old. High blood pressure in children requires medical attention. It can be a symptom of a disease that is not obvious and, if untreated, can cause serious illness.

Ask your doctor about your children about appropriate blood pressure levels for their children.

Lead Poisoning

The intoxicion lead can harm children, delaying physical and mental development, and damaging many parts of the body. The most common way in which children suffer from lead poisoning is to be in older homes where paint is chipping or peeling. Some experts recommend that tests be made of the concentration of lead per year and 2 years of age.

Any question you have answered “yes” may mean that your child needs to get tested for lead before and more often than other children.

Your child:

* Have you lived or regularly visited a house built before 1950? (This may include a daycare, preschool, the home of a babysitter or relative, etc.).

* Have you lived or regularly visited a house built before 1978 (the year that banned the use of lead-based paint in houses) which recently have done, are doing or are planning to do renovations?

* Do you have a brother or sister, friend or another child who lives in the same household and who has received treatment, or is under observation for lead poisoning?

Inmunizaciones

Your children need immunizations. Immunizations (shots) protect against many serious diseases. Below is a list of immunizations and the ages at which their children should receive.

Select to access a format or use an official report immunizations to keep informed of their children’s vaccines.

Immunizations should be given when children are the recommended age, even if their children are cold and sick. Ask your health care provider when your child should receive these important vaccines. Also ask if they need additional vaccines.

* Polio (IPV) at 2 months, 4 months, 6-18 months and 4-6 years.

* Diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (DTaP) at 2 months, 4 months, 15-18 months and 4-6 years. Tetanus, diphtheria (Td): a 11-16 years.

* Measles, mumps (mumps), rubella (MMR) at 12-15 months and 4-6 years or 11-12 years.

* Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) at 2 months, 4 months, 6 months and 12-15 months or 2 months, 4 months and 12-15 months, depending on the type of vaccine.

* Hepatitis B: the time between birth and 2 months, 1-4 months and 6-18 months. If omitted, get 3 doses from the age of 11 years.

* Varicella (VZV): at 1-12 years. If omitted, should receive between 11 and 12 years.

* Hepatitis A: from 24 months to 12 years in certain specified locations.

* Pneumococcal Disease (PrevnarT): at 2 months, 4 months, 6 months and 12-15 months. If omitted, talk with your health care provider.

How do you prevent febrile seizures?

When a child has a fever many parents use drugs such as acetoaminofen or ibuprofen to reduce fever and for the child more comfortable, although there are no studies proving that this reduces the risk of a seizure.

One preventive measure would be to try to reduce the number of illnesses with fever, although this is not a practical possibility.

Daily use and prolonged oral anticonvulsants such as phenobarbital or valproate, to prevent febrile seizures is not recommended because of potential side effects and because their effectiveness in preventing such seizures is controversial.

Children especially prone to febrile seizures can be treated as often as they have a fever with the drug diazepam orally or rectally. Most children with fever seizures do not need to be treated with medication, but in some cases the doctor may decide that medicine given only when the child has a fever is the best alternative.

This medicine may reduce the risk of having another febrile seizure. Usually this is well tolerated, but occasionally cause drowsiness, lack of coordination or hyperactivity. Children vary greatly in susceptibility to these side effects.

Some factors that appear to increase the risk of children suffering from recurrent febrile seizures include: a first febrile seizure at an early age (less than 15 months), frequent fevers and having close relatives with history of febrile seizures.

If the seizure occurs immediately at the beginning of fever or when the temperature is relatively low, the risk of recurrence is higher.

A first episode of febrile seizures is not increased substantially over the risk of recurrent febrile seizures long or short.

Are febrile seizures harmful?

In spite of that can be daunting for parents, the vast majority of febrile seizures are harmless. During a seizure, there is a small chance that the child would suffer damage if dropped or stalls for food or saliva in the mouth.

Providing appropriate first aid for seizures can help avoid these hazards (see the section entitled “What should be done by a child with febrile seizures.”)

There is no evidence that febrile seizures cause brain damage. Extensive studies have found that children with febrile seizures have normal school achievement and perform on tests of intellect just as well that the brothers who do not have seizures. Even in the rare cases of very prolonged seizures (more than an hour), most children recover completely.

About 95 to 98 percent of children who have experienced febrile seizures do not develop epilepsy. However, although the absolute risk remain attached too low, some children who have had febrile seizures face an increased risk of developing epilepsy.

These children include those who had febrile seizures long, affecting a single body part or recurred within 24 hours, and children with cerebral palsy, delayed development or other neurological abnormalities. Of the children who have none of these risk factors, only one in 100 develops epilepsy after a febrile seizure.

Parents should stay calm and carefully observe the child. To prevent accidental injuries, the child should be placed on a protected surface such as the floor or ground.

The child should not be endured or restricted during the seizure. To prevent choking, the child should be placed on its side or stomach.

If possible, one parent must carefully remove any object in the child’s mouth. Parents should never put anything in your child’s mouth during a seizure. Objects placed in the mouth can break off and obstruct the breathing passage of the child.

If the seizure lasts more than 10 minutes, the child must be taken immediately to the nearest medical facility for treatment.

After the seizure, the child should be brought to your doctor to determine the source of the fever. This is especially urgent if the child shows symptoms of stiff neck, extreme lethargy or severe vomiting.

How to diagnose and treat febrile seizures?

Before diagnosing febrile seizures in infants and children, doctors sometimes perform tests to ensure that seizures are not caused by something more than the fever itself.

For example, if a doctor suspects that your child has meningitis (an infection of membranes around the brain) is necessary to remove spinal fluid for signs of infection in cerebrospinal fluid (fluid that bathes the brain and spinal cord).

If there has been severe diarrhea or vomiting, dehydration may be responsible for the seizures. In addition, doctors carried out further tests to determine the cause of the fever of the child such as examining the blood and urine.

Usually a child with febrile seizures do not need to be hospitalized. If the seizure is prolonged or is accompanied by a serious infection, or if the source of infection can not be determined, the doctor may recommend that the child is hospitalized for observation.

Febrile seizures in infants and young children are seizures caused by fever. During febrile seizures, children often lose consciousness and extremecen, moving limbs on both sides.

Less commonly, the child becomes rigid or has contractions in a single body part, such as in an arm or leg, or on the left or right side only.

Most febrile seizures last a minute or two, although some may be as short as a few seconds and others may last for more than 15 minutes.

Most children with febrile seizures have rectal temperatures over 102 degrees F. Most febrile seizures occur during the first day of fever in children.

It is not considered that children prone to febrile seizures have epilepsy, since epilepsy is characterized by recurrent seizures that are precipitated by fever.

How common are febrile seizures?

About one in every 25 children will have at least one episode of febrile convulsions, and over a third of these children will have additional episodes before they exceed the age in which there is a tendency to take them. Febrile seizures usually occur in children between the ages of 6 months to 5 years and are particularly common in children in the age of learning to walk.

Children rarely develop their first febrile seizure before six months or after three years of age. The more advanced the age of the child when their first febrile seizure is less likely that the child would suffer more.

It is sometimes difficult to make the baby stop mourn.

* The first step is to eliminate all the common causes that make you mourn. If that fails, try to be around so there is body contact.

* Give him something to suck on a bottle or pacifier as this can soothe and calm.

* You can also put some music or some background noise such as television or the washer.

* Give a warm bath may also help, as well as moving it around, rocking, take a ride by car, or do so at your own stroller.

* Try not to overdrive the baby with too many activities and new experiences. Instead, it is best to try to establish a routine in the baby’s life, like bathing and sleeping at the same time.

There are medicines for the treatment of colic. However, their effectiveness varies and cramps may not go away until the baby’s digestive system has completed the form.

If you’ve tried everything to calm the baby and thought that crying and behavior are not something unusual, you can leave it for a while without problems, provided they leave it in her crib or bed.

Try to go to another room to listen to music or watching television. Although it may seem difficult, it is important to have free time while raising her baby.

Ask a trusted family member or friend, if only for an hour. If you are angry because your baby cries, take a break. Let the baby in the crib or bed, close the door and have a free moment.