Exploring Nonverbal Learning Disorder: Tim Walz's Son Gus Shares His Story in the Los Angeles Times
After his heartfelt reaction to his father’s acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention thrust him into the spotlight, 17-year-old Gus Walz has become one of the most high-profile people with nonverbal learning disorder. The condition doesn’t mean Gus can’t speak — he does. After hearing his dad, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, describe his family as “my entire world” Wednesday night, the tearful teenager rose to his feet, pointed toward the stage and said, “That’s my dad!” (Kaplan, 8/23)
KFF Health News: Disability Rights Advocate Fights for the Right to Participate Fully in Society
Garret Frey refuses to be sidelined. Frey has been paralyzed from the neck down for more than 37 of his 42 years. He has spent decades rejecting the government’s excuses when he and others with disabilities are denied the support they need to live in their own homes and to participate in society. The Iowan won a landmark case before the U.S. Supreme Court in 1999, after his school district refused to pay for the care he needed to continue attending high school classes in Cedar Rapids. (Leys, 8/23)
NBC News: Understanding Nonverbal Learning Disorder—A Look at Tim Walz's Son Gus' Condition
A 2020 study estimated that as many as 2.9 million children and adolescents in North America have nonverbal learning disability, or NVLD, which affects a person’s spatial-visual skills. The number of people who receive a diagnosis is likely much smaller than those living with the disability, said Santhosh Girirajan, the T. Ming Chu professor of biochemistry and molecular biology and professor of genomics at Penn State. (Sullivan, 8/22)
Los Angeles Times: California Woman Wins Lawsuit, Kaiser Agrees to Cover Wheelchair Costs Years Later
Nearly three years after wheelchair user Beth Smith sued Kaiser for capping coverage well below the costs of many motorized chairs, the Albany resident is slated to get thousands of dollars for a new chair. Smith, 64, was among the plaintiffs in a class-action suit against Kaiser Foundation Health Plan and the state over limits on insurance coverage of wheelchairs, which can cost tens of thousands of dollars. (Alpert Reyes, 8/21)
Los Angeles Times: Almost $1 Billion Remains Unused by Centers for Disabled Californians
Nearly $1 billion allocated for regional agencies that purchase supportive services for Californians with developmental disabilities went unspent in a recent year and was ultimately returned to the state, even as some disabled people and their families said they needed more help. California provides assistance to people with autism and other developmental disabilities through a system of nonprofits called regional centers, which are contracted with the California Department of Developmental Services. (Alpert Reyes, 8/20)
Becker's Hospital Review: Healthcare's Vulnerability to Ransomware
In an era where healthcare operations are becoming increasingly digitized, the risks associated with cybersecurity are evolving at a rapid pace. Traditionally, technology was seen merely as a tool to enhance the efficiency of healthcare operations. However, Christian Dameff, MD, an emergency physician and the medical director of cybersecurity at UC San Diego Health told Becker's that this view is outdated and overlooks the consolidation of critical health information into centralized digital systems, making them vulnerable to attacks. (Diaz, 8/22)
The New York Times: The Resurgence of Whooping Cough
After a yearslong lull thanks to Covid-19 precautions like isolation and distancing, whooping cough cases are now climbing back to levels seen before the pandemic, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. So far this year, there have been 10,865 cases of whooping cough, or pertussis, nationwide. That’s more than triple the number of cases documented by this time last year, and is also higher than what was seen at this time in 2019. Doctors say these estimates are most likely an undercount, as many people may not realize they have whooping cough and therefore are never tested. (Blum, 8/22)
Axios: The Back-to-School Rush for Adderall Begins
For a third year, back-to-school preparations will include a scramble to find popular drugs used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Despite signs from the Food and Drug Administration that manufacturers were catching up to outsized demand, the stimulants remain hard to track down with pharmacies out of stock and the Drug Enforcement Administration taking a harder line policing them. (Reed, 8/20)
Reuters: Judge Blocks Tylenol ADHD Lawsuits from Proceeding
Plaintiffs claiming that Kenvue's popular painkiller Tylenol causes attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in the children of mothers who took it while pregnant have lost a last ditch bid to revive their claims after a judge rejected their last remaining expert witness. (Pierson, 8/20)
ABC News: CDC Report Reveals Decline in HPV Vaccine Coverage Among Teens Since 2020
The percentage of teenagers who were up to date on their human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines has fallen dramatically since 2020, according to new federal data released Thursday. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) currently recommends children from ages 11 to 12 receive two doses of the HPV vaccine, given six to 12 months apart, although children can get the vaccine starting at age 9. (Kekatos, 8/22)
AP: US Government Report Links Fluoride Levels Twice the Recommended Limit to Lower IQ in Children
A U.S. government report expected to stir debate concluded that fluoride in drinking water at twice the recommended limit is linked with lower IQ in children. The report, based on an analysis of previously published research, marks the first time a federal agency has determined — “with moderate confidence” — that there is a link between higher levels of fluoride exposure and lower IQ in kids. While the report was not designed to evaluate the health effects of fluoride in drinking water alone, it is a striking acknowledgment of a potential neurological risk from high levels of fluoride. (Stobbe, 8/21)
CNN: Study Reveals Nearly Two-Thirds of Supermarket Baby Foods Are Unhealthy
The supermarket baby food aisle in the United States is packed with non-nutritious foods containing far too much sugar and salt and misleading marketing claims, a new study found. Sixty percent of 651 foods that are marketed for children ages 6 months to 36 months on 10 supermarkets’ shelves in the US failed to meet recommended World Health Organization nutritional guidelines for infant and toddler foods, according to the study, which was published Wednesday in the peer-reviewed journal Nutrients. (LaMotte, 8/21)
Becker's Hospital Review: Pediatric Psychiatric Bed Availability Has Remained Static Since 2017
Children's Hospital Los Angeles researchers found there has been no significant increase in pediatric inpatient hospital beds since 2017. The study, published Aug. 19 in JAMA Pediatrics, analyzed the American Hospital Association Survey Database from 2017 to 2020, focusing on hospitals that reported having pediatric inpatient psychiatric beds. The study estimated changes in the number of hospitals with pediatric inpatient psychiatric beds and the overall bed count by location. (Taylor, 8/20)
LAist: LAUSD's Strategy: School Wellness Centers to Promote Student Health and Classroom Attendance
About one-third of Los Angeles Unified students miss close to a month of school — or more — in a given school year. On-campus health care may play a role in helping students attend school more consistently. There are now 20 wellness centers on LAUSD campuses that are open to students and community members. They offer a range of services; all offer primary care, and many also offer mental health services and dental care. They are run by outside healthcare providers. (Dale, 8/21)
CalMatters: California Schools Increase Smartphone Bans, But Students Continue to Bring Them
“You should see how bad it is,” Fresno's Bullard High School principal Armen Torigian said. “It’s great to say no phones, but I don’t think people realize the addiction of the phones and what students will go to to tell you ‘No, you’re not taking my phone.’” (Jones and Johnson, 8/20)
Nature: PlayStation and Video Games Enhanced Mental Health During COVID
Playing video games for a couple of hours a day can improve mental health, according to a study on gamers in Japan during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research — which was done from December 2020 to March 2022 — found that even just owning a game console increased life satisfaction and reduced psychological distress. The results were published today in Nature Human Behaviour. (8/19)
CNN: CDC Data Reveals US Fertility Rate Hit Record Low in 2023
Women in the United States are having babies less often, and the fertility rate reached a record low in 2023, according to data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In 2023, the US fertility rate fell another 3% from the year before, to a historic low of about 55 births for every 1,000 females ages 15 to 44, according to final data published Tuesday by the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics. Just under 3.6 million babies were born last year, about 68,000 fewer than the year before. (McPhillips, 8/20)
NBC News: CDC Reports Increase in Pregnant Women Skipping Prenatal Care
The number of women going through pregnancy without prenatal care is growing — even though the overall number of babies born in the U.S. is falling, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The lopsided trend, published Tuesday by the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics, may reflect, in part, a growing number of women unable to access OB/GYN care after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. (Edwards, 8/20)
Los Angeles Times: The Unknown Number of Homeless Foster Kids in L.A. County
Iziko Calderon was in 10th grade when the seizures started. A foster youth who had churned through abusive homes, Calderon assumed the episodes were a reaction to years of pent-up trauma. Calderon every so often would collapse at school, writhing from nerve pain as if engulfed in fire. “People in school were afraid of me,” recounted Calderon, now 22 and a community organizer. (Ellis, 8/19)