Hay-fever (allergic rhinitis) Hay-fever is the reaction of an individual to grass, plant and tree pollens, dust, and other irritating inhalants. Violent sneezing, with a profuse watery discharge, occurs; the eyes become congested, there is a tendency to cough, and there may be slight... 

Birth Injuries Caput succedaneum This is an oedematous swelling which forms normally in the soft tissues over the presenting part of an infant’s head, and it is of no clinical significance. Occasionally, it hides a cephalhaematoma. It disappears without treatment in the course... 

Development and intelligence testing Gesell’s developmental tests are used to measure gross motor activity, manipulation, adaptive behaviour, language and play, and social reactions in the infant and young child” The Griffith’s test also employs a series of developmental... 

Development after the newborn period The sequential appearance, maximization and disappearance of primitive reflex patterns during the first months of life have already been mentioned. In Table 4 a summary is given of the subsequent developmental progress during the first year of... 

Diarrhea Diarrhea in babies. A baby’s intestines are sensitive the first year or two. They may be upset not only by the germs that cause diarrhea in older individuals but by one or another vegetable, by cold germs, and by other germs that don’t affect older children and... 

Constipation What’s constipation and what isn’t? One baby always has his bowel movement at the same time of day, another at a different time each day. One is just as healthy as the other. There is no advantage to be gained by trying to make the irregular baby regular.... 

Inoculations Keep a record with you. It’s a good idea to keep a record (signed by your doctor) of all your children’s inoculations (and sensitivity to drugs, if any) in your home, and to carry it with you when the family goes on trips. It’s also valuable if you move... 

The Penis Circumcision and other ways to care for the penis. Should a baby boy be circumcised? If not, what care should be given the penis (the genital)? There’s no single answer. Circumcision is the cutting off of the sleeve of skin (called the foreskin) that normally covers... 

The Navel The healing of the navel. When the baby is still in the mother’s womb, he is nourished through the blood vessels of the umbilical cord. Just after birth, the doctor ties it and cuts it off close to the baby’s body. The stump that’s left withers and eventually... 

The Pacifier A pacifier is helpful for colic and to prevent thumb-sucking. A pacifier is a “blind” nipple (without a hole in it), attached to a plastic disk that rests against the baby’s lips. He can suck vigorously on the nipple, and the disk keeps it from being...