Latest news with #LurieChildren's
Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Lurie Children's encouraging skin-to-skin contact for ICU babies
The Brief Lurie Children's is promoting skin-to-skin contact for babies with heart defects. New research shows it's safe and beneficial, even in intensive care. A new initiative, "Camp Cuddles," aims to increase parent-baby bonding in the ICU. CHICAGO - Bringing a baby into this world is a beautiful experience for new parents, but that feeling can quickly turn terrifying when the baby has a congenital heart defect. What we know One percent of babies born in the U.S. end up in the Cardiac Care Unit, and it's long been thought that holding those babies isn't safe. However, a new campaign by Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago is encouraging more cuddles. "That's one thing I was worried about." Tori and Jarett Austin are the new parents of Elijah Austin, who was born on May 5 with a congenital heart defect. "Not being able to do as much skin to skin with him, because I absolutely loved doing it with my first two," said Tori. What she is referring to is an intervention where babies are held primarily just wearing a diaper to a parent's bare chest. Dig deeper Skin to skin hasn't always been standard practice for sick infants in the Cardiac Care Unit. But now, Lurie Children's is spreading awareness about new research that not only says "kangaroo care" is safe for these babies, but it's encouraged. "There's a lot's of benefits," said Tiffany DeVries, who is the Manager of Patient Care Operations in the Cardiac Care Unit at Lurie Children's. "It helps with immunity. It helps with bonding. It helps with lactation for our moms. It helps with temperature regulation and postpartum changes for mom and baby." Lurie Children's is hosting the first multicenter Skin-to-Skin-A-Thon for infants in the Cardiac ICU. It's affectionately called Camp Cuddles. "A lot of our families are new parents, so not only is it their first time being a parent… they're scared of their newborn baby like every parent is," said DeVries. "But they also have the additional layer of having a baby in the ICU. So encouraging them that this is safe and not only safe but encouraged. We want new parents to pick up their babies and spend time holding them. This creates some semblance of being at home and not so out of their element in the ICU." Skin to skin isn't just for new moms either. The warmth of dad also helps temperature regulation for the baby. What's next Lurie Children's has set a goal for every baby in the Cardiac Care Unit to get 40-hours of skins to skin per week. The Source FOX 32's Brian Jackson reported on this story.
Daily Mail
05-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
American father raising money for sick kids dies on Mt. Makalu
An American mountaineer who was climbing to raise funds for a children's cancer charity has died on a Himalayan peak while preparing for his summit attempt. Alexander Pancoe, 39, from Illinois, suffered a suspected cardiac arrest late Sunday night at Camp II on Mt Makalu in Nepal, the world's fifth-highest mountain. The highly experienced climber, who was a brain tumor survivor, had just completed an acclimatization rotation to Camp III. 'Alex felt uncomfortable while he returned from the camp three of the 8,485-metre mountain completing his acclimatization rotation,' Iswari Paudel of Himalayan Guides confirmed to the Himalayan Times. Expedition officials told the Independent that Pancoe was preparing to rest for the night when he suddenly felt unwell. His teammates attempted to revive him for over an hour, yet he tragically remained unresponsive. The father of two young children was on the challenging climb to raise $27,838 (the height of Mt Makalu in feet) for Lurie Children's pediatric blood cancer program in his hometown of Chicago. Pancoe had also been fighting chronic myeloid leukemia at the time of his death. He was the founder of Peaks of Mind, a non profit that combines climbing to 'raise awareness and make a difference.' The father of two young children was on the challenging climb to raise $27,838 (the height of Mt Makalu in feet) for Lurie Children's pediatric blood cancer program in his hometown of Chicago 'In 2005, I was diagnosed with a brain tumor and successfully operated on at Lurie Children's Hospital. 20 years later I have had no complications,' he explained on the Peaks of Mind's website. 'In 2016, I went on a life-changing adventure to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro. In the years following, I fell in love with adventure, overcoming fear, and pushing my physical and mental limits.' The experienced climber had already achieved major feats before his final expedition - while raising funds for sick kids along the way. 'I got this crazy idea in my head (the crazy is something the surgery didn't change) to pursue the Explorer's Grand Slam - a challenge that involves climbing the 7 summits and skiing to both the North and South Pole.' 'While pursuing this dream, I raised awareness, shared other patients' journeys, and raise funds for pediatric brain tumor research at Lurie Children's - giving back to the amazing institution that saved his life years prior.' He had previous close calls. During a 2023 climb of Ama Dablam in the Himalayas Pancoe was when he first noticed serious health problems. 'It was a wild few years filled with adventure, a near fatal climbing injury that required a blackhawk helicopter rescue, and lots of climbing! In 2019, upon summiting Everest and Denali, I became just the 15th American and one of 75 people in the world to complete the Grand Slam, raising almost $500,000 in the process for Lurie Children's.' 'In 2023. while climbing Ama Dablam, a challenging climb in the Himalayan range, I became extremely hypoxic and struggled with the altitude. Several months later I was diagnosed with Chronic Myeloid Leukemia and learned my body had been unable to make the red bloods cells necessary to acclimate at altitude.' But despite the devastating diagnosis, Pancoe was determined to continue his mission. 'CML is a lifelong cancer and after almost two years of receiving treatment to manage it - I am going to be attempting to climb Makalu, the 5th highest mountain the world and raise $27,838 (the height if Makalu in feet) for Lurie Children's pediatric blood cancer program.
Yahoo
10-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Mother's kidney donation saves son's life and inspires future donors
The Brief During National Donate Life Month, Lurie Children's is highlighting the importance of organ donation through the story of Christine Brown, who donated a kidney to her son Aiden in 2021 after he was diagnosed with polycystic kidney disease. Thanks to early diagnosis and a living donation, Aiden avoided the national transplant list and is now thriving. Lurie is urging more people to register as organ donors, as many families are not as fortunate. CHICAGO - It's National Donate Life Month, and the Lurie Children's Transplant Program is ringing in April with an extra push to become an organ and tissue donor. A mom in the northwest suburbs is part of that push. Christine Brown is walking around with one less piece of herself but has gained an even bigger purpose: In April 2021, she donated her kidney to her son Aiden. "No, you go into fight or flight, so looking back, there's parts of it that I don't even remember just because it happened so quickly you don't really have time to process what's happening, it's just going through what we need to do to save him," said Brown. Aiden was diagnosed with polycystic kidney disease when he was just 7 years old. At the time, Christine was pushing doctors to find out why Aiden wasn't growing. After receiving the diagnosis, the disease spread fast. Within six weeks, her smiley and active boy progressed to Stage 4 kidney disease. He was put on the transplant list for a new kidney. "If we had not pushed to find out what was wrong, Aiden absolutely would have been in an emergency room in kidney failure," said Brown. Lucky for Aiden, he didn't have to join the 2,100 children on the national transplant list. His mom came in to help. "His Dad and I went through genetic testing, and I was approved and a match and so then Aidan received my kidney," said Brown. What they're saying "I wish we always had happy stories. Often, the stories end as beautifully as they do for Aiden," said Dr. Priya Verghese, who is the Medical Director of Pediatric Kidney Transplant and the Division Head of Nephrology at Lurie Children's. "For a lot of our kids, though, they have parents that want to donate, but they can't. Because either they're not healthy themselves, or they are single parenting, and they need to look after their child after the transplant so they can donate. Or they have social circumstances that prevent them from pursuing that as an option." Recently, Lurie has been breaking program records. In 2024, the hospital performed 142 pediatric solid organ and stem cell transplants, making it the top transplant center in procedure volume and patient survival rates. "I don't think they realize how checking that box on their driver's license can impact so many lives," Verghese said, "That's what makes April such an important month. We really need people to donate kidneys. Because not everyone is as lucky as Aiden. We do rely on that kidney transplant list for a lot of our patients." "Kidneys have a shorter lifespan. So, Aiden will need multiple transplants to live a full life. So, it's so important for us to share awareness, our story, to spread that because kidney donation doesn't have to be from a deceased donor. You could be a living donor and still save somebody's life, which is the most amazing gift," Brown said. For now, Aiden is living life to the fullest after his long recovery in the hospital four years ago. "I'm super-excited that I was able to still, like, do normal things," Aiden said. But while Aiden grows, gets even better at the drums, and masters his golf swing, he, his family, and thousands of others know there is a fight to raise awareness and get everyone to register as an organ and tissue donor. "They should definitely donate to help kids like me," Aiden said. The Source This report came from interviews with Christine Brown, her son Aiden and Dr. Priya Verghese from Lurie Children's.
Yahoo
19-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Measles prevention: How the two-dose regimen works
CHICAGO (WGN) — About 90 percent of the US population has gotten their two dose regimen to protect against measles, mumps and rubella, but increasingly, the unvaccinated have been contracting the highly contagious, deadly disease. Northwestern University and Lurie Children's ediatric infectious disease specialist Dr. Ravi Jhaveri warns that without proper coverage, storm clouds ahead have him worried. 'I like to have people think about vaccines as an umbrella, and the idea is an umbrella doesn't necessarily keep you from getting wet but it keeps you from getting soaked,' he said. 'We see periodic outbreaks of measles because it's a very highly contagious agent and even modest drops in the amount of protection amongst communities can lead to outbreaks.' Measles cases rise to about 320 total in Texas and New Mexico. What you should know. March 14 | More than 300 measles cases now confirmed in 14 states Decades of research has proven the MMR vaccine is 95 percent effective after the first dose. Experts say now it is more critical than ever to know protection level and potential threat. 'More than 90 percent of parents are having their kids vaccinated on time with the appropriate doses by the time their kids enter kindergarten, and so I want to make sure we recognize them for the effort they are doing,' Dr. Jhaveri said. The measles vaccine comes in two doses, working in stages to combat a virus that can linger in the air for hours after an infected person coughs sneezes or even talks. The respiratory infection leads to fever, cough, inflamed eyes, mouth sores and a skin rash. 'We know with an agent like measles, that's very contagious, that 95 percent wasn't enough, and so that led to the outbreak of cases in the late 80s and 90s, so we then instituted a second dose to try to make sure we cover the population well so even that five percent that didn't respond to the first dose was captured and covered with second dose,' Jhaveri explained. Eventually, for convenience, doctors and parents began giving the second dose to children at age 4. Dr. Jhaveri said the move became more practical and effective. But as measles spreads now, should parents be concerned if their child only got one shot? 'You are definitely going to be protected partially. One dose is better than no doses and two doses is better,' Jhaveri said. For those teenaged to adulthood, the two doses are far in the rear view mirror. And since the virus is one of the most contagious, with nine out of 10 people exposed to an infected person likely to get sick, doctors can see a situation where greater illness is in sight, even for the vaccinated. 'You should talk to your doctor about making sure you have up-to-date vaccines with the current guidance and we are airing on the side of extra doses,' Jhaveri said. That's why the MMR shot is so critical for children to render the population with herd immunity. As for adult boosters, Jhaveri said the population isn't necessarily at risk but, 'if you are close to an outbreak or could be exposed if you work in a healthcare setting, we air on the side of extra doses.' Rising vaccine hesitancy has health experts concerned about other illnesses as well, including chicken pox and potentially polio. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
