Neonatal medicine, childhood infections, developmental milestones, safeguarding, congenital conditions, and paediatric emergencies.
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is a neurodevelopmental condition characterised by inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity, affecting approximately 5% of school-age children in the UK.
Autism spectrum disorder is a lifelong neurodevelopmental condition characterised by persistent difficulties in social communication and interaction, with restricted and repetitive patterns of behaviour, interests, or activities.
Cerebral palsy is a group of permanent, non-progressive disorders of movement and posture caused by injury to the developing brain, making it the most common cause of childhood physical disability.
Childhood asthma is the most common chronic disease of childhood in the UK, characterised by recurrent wheeze, cough, and breathlessness. BTS/SIGN and NICE guidelines provide stepwise management approaches.
Childhood cancer is rare but is the leading cause of disease-related death in children aged 1-14 in the UK, with leukaemia, brain tumours, and lymphomas being the most common types.
Childhood epilepsy encompasses a range of seizure disorders with onset in childhood. Classification, EEG, and neuroimaging guide diagnosis. Treatment follows NICE NG217 with first-line AEDs selected according to seizure type.
The UK childhood immunisation schedule is a comprehensive programme protecting against major infectious diseases. It begins at 8 weeks and continues through adolescence, following the Green Book and PHE guidance.
Childhood obesity is a growing public health crisis in the UK, defined as BMI ≥95th centile for age and sex, with significant metabolic, psychological, and musculoskeletal consequences.
Childhood rashes encompass a wide spectrum from benign viral exanthems to life-threatening infections, requiring systematic clinical assessment to distinguish common self-limiting conditions from those needing urgent intervention.
UTI in children is a common bacterial infection requiring prompt diagnosis and treatment to prevent renal scarring. NICE CG54 provides age-specific guidance on investigation, antibiotic choice, and imaging.
Coeliac disease is an autoimmune enteropathy triggered by gluten ingestion in genetically susceptible children, causing villous atrophy and malabsorption.
Congenital heart disease encompasses structural cardiac abnormalities present from birth, affecting approximately 8 per 1,000 live births, ranging from simple septal defects to complex cyanotic lesions.
Croup (laryngotracheobronchitis) is a common viral upper airway infection in young children causing a characteristic barking cough, stridor, and hoarseness. Oral dexamethasone is the first-line treatment for all severities.
Cystic fibrosis is the most common life-limiting autosomal recessive condition in Caucasian populations, caused by CFTR gene mutations leading to thick secretions affecting the lungs, pancreas, and other organs.
Dehydration assessment in children requires systematic clinical evaluation of fluid status using specific signs and symptoms, guiding rehydration strategy from oral to intravenous therapy.
Developmental delay is failure to meet age-appropriate milestones. Global developmental delay (≥2 domains) affects 1-3% of children and requires systematic investigation including genetics, neuroimaging, and metabolic screening.
Down syndrome (trisomy 21) is the most common chromosomal abnormality, affecting approximately 1 in 800-1,000 live births, causing intellectual disability and characteristic physical features with multiple systemic associations.
Atopic eczema is the most common inflammatory skin condition of childhood, affecting up to 20% of UK children, characterised by chronic relapsing pruritic dermatitis with a genetic basis linked to filaggrin mutations.
Encephalitis is inflammation of the brain parenchyma, most commonly caused by HSV in the UK. It presents with altered consciousness, seizures, and behavioural change. IV aciclovir must be started immediately if suspected.
Failure to thrive (faltering growth) describes inadequate weight gain or growth in a child, usually in infants and young children, with both organic and non-organic causes.
Febrile seizures are the most common seizure type in children, occurring between 6 months and 5 years during febrile illness. Simple febrile seizures are benign with excellent prognosis and no increased risk of epilepsy.
HSP (IgA vasculitis) is the most common vasculitis of childhood, characterised by palpable purpura, arthralgia, abdominal pain, and renal involvement. It is usually self-limiting but requires monitoring for renal complications.
Hirschsprung disease is a congenital absence of ganglion cells in the distal bowel, causing functional bowel obstruction, typically presenting with delayed passage of meconium and abdominal distension in the neonatal period.
Innocent (functional) murmurs are benign heart sounds found in up to 50% of children at some point, caused by normal turbulent blood flow in a structurally normal heart.
Intussusception is the invagination of one segment of bowel into an adjacent segment, most commonly ileocolic, and is the most common cause of intestinal obstruction in infants aged 6 months to 2 years.
NEC is a devastating inflammatory bowel condition predominantly affecting preterm infants. It presents with abdominal distension, bloody stools, and feeding intolerance. Pneumatosis intestinalis on AXR is pathognomonic.
The newborn and infant physical examination (NIPE) is a screening programme performed within 72 hours of birth. It focuses on eyes, heart, hips, and testes, alongside a comprehensive systems examination.
Neonatal jaundice is extremely common, affecting ~60% of term neonates. Physiological jaundice peaks at day 2-3 and is benign. Pathological jaundice (<24h, prolonged, or very high levels) requires investigation and may need phototherapy or exchange transfusion.
Neonatal resuscitation follows the Newborn Life Support (NLS) algorithm. The primary focus is establishing effective ventilation, as the vast majority of neonatal resuscitation responds to airway management and lung inflation breaths.
Neonatal sepsis is a life-threatening infection in the first 28 days of life. NICE CG149 guides risk factor-based screening and empirical treatment with IV benzylpenicillin and gentamicin within 1 hour of suspicion.
Nephrotic syndrome in children is characterised by heavy proteinuria, hypoalbuminaemia, oedema, and hyperlipidaemia, most commonly due to minimal change disease.
Non-accidental injury (NAI) refers to physical harm inflicted on a child by a caregiver, encompassing a spectrum from bruising to fatal abusive head trauma, requiring systematic clinical evaluation and safeguarding action.
Normal child development follows predictable milestones across four domains: gross motor, fine motor/vision, speech/language/hearing, and social/behaviour. Knowledge of milestones is essential for identifying developmental delay.
Community-acquired pneumonia in children is most commonly caused by viruses in young children and bacteria (S. pneumoniae) in older children. Amoxicillin is first-line oral treatment per BTS guidelines.
Prematurity (birth before 37 weeks' gestation) is the leading cause of neonatal mortality worldwide. Key complications include RDS, NEC, IVH, ROP, and chronic lung disease, all requiring specialised neonatal care.
Infantile hypertrophic pyloric stenosis causes progressive projectile vomiting in infants aged 2-8 weeks due to hypertrophy of the pyloric muscle, requiring pyloromyotomy after fluid and electrolyte correction.
Safeguarding in paediatrics involves recognising and responding to child abuse and neglect, with all healthcare professionals having a statutory duty to protect children under the Children Acts 1989 and 2004.
Sickle cell disease is the most common inherited haemoglobinopathy in the UK, caused by HbS mutations leading to sickling of red cells, vaso-occlusive crises, and progressive organ damage.
Vesicoureteral reflux (VUR) is the retrograde flow of urine from the bladder into the ureters and renal pelvis, predisposing to recurrent UTIs and renal scarring in children.
Viral-induced wheeze is episodic wheeze triggered by viral upper respiratory tract infections in young children. It is distinct from atopic asthma and typically resolves by school age.