[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Norton Children’s Pulmonology, affiliated with the UofL School of Medicine, is actively recruiting adolescent participants who meet criteria for a clinical trial of two inhaled treatments for asthma. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 6 million children in the United States have asthma. Even with sufficient symptom management, asthma exacerbations…
Care provided by Norton Children’s Pulmonology, affiliated with the UofL School of Medicine, helped Norton Children’s Hospital earn the No. 38 U.S. News & World Report ranking for pulmonology and lung surgery in 2022, aided in part by low pediatric asthma readmission rates. The program has expanded its testing for asthma to help lower readmission…
When should a pediatrician refer an asthma patient to a pulmonologist? Primary care providers can help manage treatment for a child’s mild asthma, but when the patient’s symptoms exceed routine care or simple maintenance, it’s time to make a referral. “If a patient is taking their medications and avoiding triggers, and their asthma still is…
For the first time in 13 years, the national asthma treatment guidelines were updated with several new recommendations and options for pediatric asthma therapy. In December 2020, the recommendations highlighted updates in diagnosis, management and treatment of asthma. The new guidelines represent substantial progress not only in understanding and managing asthma in children, but in…
Children on Medicaid in Kentucky who experience asthma may have had a tougher time managing their symptoms following a payer-initiated formulary change that led to the use of a different inhaler device, according to a recent study. A formulary change undertaken in August 2016 by a Medicaid payer in Kentucky eliminated coverage of beclomethasone dipropionate,…
A new cystic fibrosis treatment is now available for children ages 6 to 11. The drug Trikafta was previously prescribed only to children 12 and older. In June, the Food and Drug Administration approved Trikafta (a three-drug combination of elexacaftor, ivacaftor and tezacaftor) after clinical trials with younger patients showed the treatment generally had the…
The patient A 3-year-old twin girl with a history of prematurity (32 weeks gestational age), intubated for five days in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and who developed pneumothorax as a neonate, was referred to the pediatric pulmonology clinic with dyspnea with activity following a symptomatic COVID-19 infection three months prior to presentation. She…
Children and teens experiencing severe cases of asthma face unique challenges living in the Louisville area. Louisville is routinely among the most challenging cities to live with asthma and among the top cities with emergency room visits for asthma, according to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America. If a child you are treating has…
A new multidisciplinary cerebral palsy clinic for children who need a higher level of care has opened in the Novak Center for Children’s Health in downtown Louisville. The clinic aims to streamline care, make appointments easier for families and improve outcomes. “Multidisciplinary clinics allow one patient to be seen by multiple doctors instead of the…
With kids returning to in-classroom instruction, the availability of vaping products and the peer pressure to use them could increase. That adds to the risks of developing COVID-19 as well as e-cigarette or vaping use-associated lung injury (EVALI). A recent study published in the Journal of Adolescent Health found that those ages 13 to 24…
Establishing an asthma action plan for your pediatric patients is a great first step, but helping them and their families adhere to it could be even more important. Self-management through an asthma action plan that guides patients in adjusting their medication improves quality of life, reduces use of health care and leads to fewer days…
Scott G. Bickel, M.D., had received an undergraduate degree in computer science when he decided he’d rather be interacting with patients than computer screens. Now a board-certified pediatric pulmonologist with Norton Children’s Pulmonology, affiliated with the UofL School of Medicine, Dr. Bickel devotes much of his work to cystic fibrosis, pulmonary function testing, medical education…