Chapter 17: Pediatrics

Common neonatal complications including hypoglycemia, jaundice with risk of bilirubin encephalopathy, and various respiratory distress presentations require immediate recognition and intervention. The chapter systematically addresses developmental surveillance across childhood, establishing normative milestones in motor function, language acquisition, cognitive ability, and social-emotional domains from infancy through adolescence, while also identifying delay patterns and developmental disorders such as cerebral palsy and spina bifida. Significant emphasis is placed on metabolic screening protocols performed universally in newborns, including detection of phenylketonuria, congenital adrenal hyperplasia, and thyroid insufficiency. Chromosomal and genetic abnormalities receive detailed attention, encompassing trisomy syndromes, sex chromosome variations, and heritable connective tissue disorders, with discussion of their clinical manifestations and long-term management implications. Growth assessment receives thorough coverage, distinguishing between failure to thrive as a pathological state, constitutional variations in growth patterns, and true growth hormone deficiency. Nutritional concerns in pediatrics including micronutrient deficiencies and childhood obesity are addressed within the context of preventive health. Immunization protocols following current recommendations for children from birth through eighteen years provide practical guidance for preventive medicine. The chapter concludes with adolescent-specific considerations including mental health screening, behavioral assessment, and anticipatory guidance appropriate for this developmental period, along with management of pediatric poisonings and common acute presentations encountered in clinical practice.