Articles tagged with 'featured' | Checkup Newsroom

By Diane Arnaout, M.D. When I first met little Pierce a few days after he came home from the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, I noted two things: Pierce was a tough little guy, a real fighter, and his parents were two of the most caring, loving and e...

Six-year-old Raven Goff never met a stranger. If she didn’t know your name, she’d simply call you ‘friend.’ Her family recalls her generosity, always more worried about others than herself. Sometimes, that generosity meant several trips to Target to ...

"What happens if my child eats all of my adult vitamins?" We received this question recently. Let's discuss. Just like any adult medication, vitamins should be locked away so that kids can't get to them. Vitamins are particularly risky because,...

"Why is the school nurse calling me?" "Your child is here with a sore throat. I know they haven’t had a fever, but strep has been going around." Whelp, there goes your day. Cancel all your meetings. Call your pediatrician's office. Get an appoi...

When you live with a child, almost every day's unpredictable, and sometimes those adventures means your child needs medical attention. But choosing the best place to go for your child's care  can be a difficult one for some parents. After all, Coo...

Right now, your child’s sneezing and watery eyes are most likely from mountain cedar or ragweed in Texas. But wait a little bit, and your child’s allergies will be for another reason. Ankita Singh, D.O., a pediatrician at Cook Children’s Walsh Ran...

An unusual and even deadly flu season continues to impact the area's children. Last week (Dec. 22-Dec.28, 2019) at Cook Children's Medical Center, 1,457 children tested for the flu. Five hundred forty-six patients tested positive for Influenza B, ...

The Marvel Comics Universe consists of ordinary people whose lives turn extraordinary once they discover their superpowers. Braden Baker is one of those superheroes. Except Braden is not only in the pages of a comic book, appearing on Ellen and a ...

The world is buzzing about the release of the latest film in the Star Wars saga “The Rise of Skywalker” set to hit the big screen tonight. Earlier this month, Disney released a statement with the Epilepsy Foundation warning viewers that certain scene...

Every three minutes someone in the United States is diagnosed with a blood cancer such as leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma. For 70% of those patients, the only hope for a cure is a bone marrow transplant from someone outside of their family. This is...

My name is Anna Carey, and I am 16 years old. I was hospitalized at Cook Children’s for five days because of vaping and dabbing. I used to play volleyball and tennis, but now I will never be able to play sports again. I started vaping when I was a...

On Thursday, Dec. 5, Tarrant County Public Health confirmed the first pediatric flu death since 2015. Three other pediatric flu deaths have been reported in Texas in this current season. “Because of the sensitive nature of the information, we can’...

As a mother of three, Audrey Ferrel knows about giving the gift of life. But it wasn’t until her oldest daughter, Jackie, was in renal failure and would need a kidney transplant to survive that she would have the chance to provide that gift one more ...

Aaden Balderamos hops up and down, squealing with joy as the bubbles float into the air. "Bubbles. Bubbles. Up. Up. Pop!" The nurse taking Aaden's vitals before his doctor's appointment can't help but smile too. She's blowing the bubbles as she...

Does your child have the sniffles, sneezing, tummy aches or worse? They aren’t alone. Last week, eight children tested positive the flu at the medical center, according to Laboratory results from Cook Children’s. What’s interesting is that seven c...

Parents get croup and whooping cough mixed up all the time at my office. I think it’s really important to know the difference – one is fairly common, and the other is much more rare – and can be deadly. Croup is a common viral infection I see d...

If you live in Keller, specifically if you have a child at Timberview Middle School, you may have received an email confirming  a case of whooping cough, or pertussis, in the area. If you are concerned about your child, here are seven facts you ne...

"95% of baby foods contain heavy metals" "Heavy metals in baby foods leading to lower IQs" You might have seen these headlines in the past few weeks as a result of the report, "What's in my baby's food?" from the Healthy Babies, Bright Futures ...

As the mother of three boys under the age of 5, and all capable of impressive tantrums, Dana Brown-Bonner thought she knew what it meant to be challenged and live in chaos. But that was before an unexpected life event put her resiliency to the test. ...

“His cough is sooo croupy!” When parents report a croupy cough, it means different things. Some parents call bad/deep/dry/wet/rattly coughs croupy. When I think of “croupy cough,” I mean “barky” like a dog or a seal. We are seeing quite a bit o...

By Megan Cole, Emergency Department Nurse, Cook Children's Medical Center I have had the privilege of working in the Emergency Department at Cook Children’s for 10 years, with three of those years as a nurse. I often have people ask me, “How do yo...

By Cindi Coker Ever found yourself  Coming and Going?? Mommy Memory Failing?? Brain on Overload?? Well, I find myself there VERY often, not only because I am a mom of twin 15-year-old boys but as a mom of a severely handicapped child. Most woul...

By Megan Cole, Cook Children's Emergency Department Nurse Food allergies are a frequently discussed topic among parents and medical professionals. If you are not a parent of a child with food allergies, chances are high that someone you love, or s...

Fortunately, chest pain in kids is rarely their heart but here are 5 signs that you should be worried about: The pain is "crushing" or pressing down. There are other symptoms like passing out, nausea or skipping/racing heartbeats. The pain is ...

Bellanne (Bel) Coonrod never met a stranger. To Bel, everyone could use a little extra love, especially on the Hematology and Oncology floor of Cook Children’s. Bel knew the hallways of Cook Children’s well. Born with a medley of complex medical d...

When it comes to childhood, not all experiences are left in the past. Some stay with us and impact our development mentally, physically and emotionally for years to come. Specifically, adversity and traumatic experiences like abuse, neglect and high ...

Cook Children’s is looking for parents of children ages 4-12 years old to participate in a gun safety research project.  The study takes place on the Cook Children's main campus in Fort Worth, Texas, and participants must be willing to attend the ...

With unseasonably warm weather hovering in the mid-90s, most Texans probably aren’t thinking about the cold and flu season right around the corner. And only time will tell for sure, but some indicators lean toward a potentially severe influenza se...

As the parents of six, Dave and Jeanie Caselman have mastered the art of handling whatever life throws at them. Whether it’s school events, sports, graduating from high school or starting college, they thought they had experienced it all with the...

It’s that time of year again. With flu season upon us, many parents are breaking the news to their kids that it’s time for “a shot.” It’s also a time you likely dread as much as your kids, knowing how helpless you feel when they are anxious and yo...