Weekly Report 3-26

This School Year, Prioritize Whole Health - Physical and

By d-mars.com News Provider

As back-to-school season gets underway, it's important to ensure that your child is ready for the school year, both physically and emotionally, by scheduling a well-child visit.

Annual well-child visits are doctor appointments for preventive health services which are essential for ensuring a child's growth and tracking developmental milestones. The well-child visit is also the time for routine immunizations to prevent diseases like measles, polio, hepatitis B, chickenpox, whooping cough, and other serious diseases.

"Like vaccines, which prevent physical health conditions, speaking with your child's primary care physician regularly about mental health concerns is also an essential part of overall preventive care," said Rhonda L. Randall, D.O., and chief medical officer at UnitedHealthcare.

"Your annual well-child visit is also an opportunity to have a conversation with your child's physician. It's best to have these conversations when problems or warning signs first appear, so your physician can take the appropriate steps to best treat them."

If you're not sure what questions to ask your child's primary care physician during an annual well-child visit, consider the following:

Ask what vaccines are appropriate for your child's age - and how to make up any that have been missed. You can refer to the list of child and adolescent vaccines recommended by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) at CDC.gov/vaccines. In addition to other childhood vaccines, both flu and COVID-19 vaccines are recommended by the CDC for everyone 6 months of age and older. If you are concerned about childhood vaccines, ask the pediatrician about common side effects, which are typically very mild, such as pain or swelling at the injection site, and can include low-grade fever or rash.

Discuss changes in your child's behavior. Some common warning signs that your child's mental well-being isn't where it needs to be include persistent sadness, withdrawing from or avoiding social interactions, displaying outbursts of extreme irritability, drastic changes in mood, behavior, or personality, changes in eating habits, difficulty sleeping, frequent headaches or stomachaches, difficulty concentrating, changes in academic performance or avoiding or missing school.

Ask for guidance on how best to support your child. Whether you have concerns about your child's nutrition, exercise, sleeping patterns or behavioral changes, your child's primary care physician is a great place to start. With so many young children experiencing mental and emotional health challenges, it's important to create opportunities for them to share how they are really doing. Remember that these can be sensitive topics for your child to discuss. Empathy and patience go a long way to help children and adolescents feel listened to and comfortable.

Don't forget to bring your sports physical forms. It's great if

your child participates in school sports. The wellness visit is an opportune time to make sure your physician is aware that your child is a student-athlete and address any concerns like nutrition, prior injuries, and family history.

Ask for recommendations for other health care professionals, if needed. For example, if your child hasn't seen the dentist in a while, if their vision screening indicated that they need to see an eye doctor, or their mental health screening has raised concerns, ask which health care professionals in your plan's network they would recommend.

"If you haven't already, now is the time to schedule an appointment with their pediatrician, to give your child a healthy start to the school year," added Randall. "Regular well-child visits are essential in making sure your child is up to date on immunizations and that their developmental milestones are on track - including

their mental well-being."

To learn more about recommended preventive care for your child, visit UHC.com.

Source: BPT

Like vaccines, which prevent physical health conditions, speaking with your child’s primary care physician regularly about mental health concerns is also an essential part of overall preventive care,” said Rhonda L. Randall, D.O., and chief medical officer at UnitedHealthcare. “Your annual wellchild visit is also an opportunity to have a conversation with your child’s physician. It’s best to have these conversations when problems or warning signs first appear, so your physician can take the appropriate steps to best treat them.”

Your Child’s and Mental

What You Need To Know About Heel Pain

By d-mars.com News Provider

Very common in adults and on the rise in chil dren, heel pain continues to be the number one reason patients seek care from foot and ankle surgeons. While experts say there are many reasons for heel pain, including bursitis, Achilles tendonitis, bone bruises, fractures, growth spurts, and nerve pain, the most common cause is plan tar fasciitis, a condition that one in 10 people will suffer from in their lifetime.

According to the American College of Foot and An kle Surgeons (ACFAS), plantar fasciitis can have serious repercussions if left untreated. Here’s what to know:

What is Plantar Fasciitis?

Plantar fasciitis is an inflammation of the band of tissue (the plantar fascia) that extends from the heel to the toes in which the fascia be comes irritated and then inflamed. Symptoms in clude pain on the bottom of the heel, pain in the arch of the foot, and swelling on the bottom of the heel. For many, the pain is worse upon arising and increases over a period of months.

A telltale sign of mechanical issues in the foot, those with overly flat feet or high-arched feet are more prone to developing plantar fasciitis. Lifestyle factors can also play a role. Wearing non-supportive footwear on hard, flat surfaces puts abnormal strain on the plantar fascia. This is particularly evident when one’s job requires long hours on the feet. Obesity and overuse may also contribute to plantar fasciitis.

How is it Treated?

“We typically treat plantar fasciitis conservatively, at first,” said Michael J. Cornelison, DPM, FACFAS, a foot and ankle surgeon and president of the American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons. “This can include a combination of remedies, including rest, exercises that stretch the calf muscles, orthotics, icing the heel, over-the-counter medications like ibuprofen, supportive footwear, and physical therapy.”

Most patients respond well to conservative treatments. However, depending on the severity of the plantar fasciitis, additional therapies may be required, including:

• Injection Therapy: Growth factor injections and platelet-rich plasma injections are used to boost the body’s healing response and help repair injured tissue.

• Shockwave Therapy: This in-office treatment uses sound waves delivered over the skin to slightly damage the tissue and stimulate the body’s natural repair process. This helps the plantar fasciitis heal and relieves pain symptoms without making an incision. Patients can expect to be up and moving immediately after treatment, but it may take three to six months to see results.

• Ultrasonic Treatment: In this newer procedure, a small incision is made into the heel of the foot and a probe directs ultrasonic energy at the fascia to break down bad tissue and help the healing process. A diagnostic ultrasound tool is used to create an image of the inside of the foot and guide the probe. Patients may need to wear a boot immediately after the procedure for up to two weeks and they can expect to see improvements anywhere from three to six months after the procedure.

• Surgery: Also called a plantar fasciotomy, this minimally invasive, minimally traumatic surgical treatment involves making a small incision through the heel into the damaged tendon to try to lengthen it and relieve tension. Patients tend to recover in six to 10 weeks, but it may take up to three months to resume exercise and more vigorous activities.

No matter what kind of treatment a patient undergoes, the underlying causes that led to the condition may remain. Preventive measures, such as wearing supportive shoes, stretching, and using custom orthotic devices, are the mainstay of long-term treatment for plantar fasciitis.

For more heel pain information and to find a foot and ankle surgeon near you, visit FootHealthFacts.org, the patient education website for the American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons.

Source: StatePoint