Dec
30
DuPage Medical Group’s General Pediatrics Department Helps the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation
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DMG’s General Pediatrics Physicians and Plainfield’s Timber Ridge Middle School eighth grade students helped raise $2,086 for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundationas part of the Kids Helping Kids service project on December 19, 2008. Students bowled at Pioneer Lanes in Plainfield to help fight juvenile diabetes - they far surpassed their goal of $500, raising $1,043 with General Pediatrics matching the total raised. As reported in The Plainfield Sun (December 26, 2008 online edition), students at Timber Ridge Middle School decided to donate to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation because some of their classmates have the disease.
General Pediatrics has three locations to serve you: 14710 S. Naperville Road Plainfield 815-676-2570; 1020 E. Ogden Avenue Naperville 630-369-4550; and 3743 Highland Avenue Downers Grove 630-964-6049.
For more information on Diabetes, please visit DMG’s Diabetes Care pages.
Dec
12
Being Physically Prepared for Pregnancy is Important
Filed Under Physician & Health Articles, DuPage Medical Group News | Comments Off
Women thinking of conceiving the second time around need to make sure they are healthy and taking care of their bodies. As quoted in My Suburban Life (December 9, 2008), Dr. Susan Mitchell said, “One thing to consider is how long the body had to recover from their previous pregnancy.” A previous cesarean section needs more time to heal than a vaginal delivery. “It’s also important to take into consideration any medical issues she may have, such as high blood pressure or diabetes. It’s important for the baby in the first weeks of development to have a normal blood sugar level and for her thyroid hormone level to be normal,” adds Dr. Mitchell.
Additional information on how to prepare for a second child financially as well as mentally is discussed in the My Suburban Life article.
To make an appointment with Dr. Mitchell, please call 630-435-6107 (view office location map).
Dec
11
Vaccine Safety
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Concerns about vaccine safety continue to be in the news. As physicians who care for approximately 25% of all DuPage county residents, we want to make sure that our patients get the facts about this very important public health issue. Therefore, DuPage Medical Group submitted a letter to the editors of all the major publications in the area regarding this issue. We felt it was important to hear from the doctors who care for the children every day. We encourage all parents to click the links below to get the straight facts about vaccines. And as always, we encourage you to discuss this and any other matters concerning your child’s health with your child’s doctor. After all, nothing is more important than the health of our children.
A letter to the editor regarding concerns about vaccine safety
Dear Editor,
There have been a number of high profile discussions recently about a possible link between childhood vaccinations and higher incidences of certain diseases such as autism. The pediatricians and family practice physicians of DuPage Medical Group would like to address the facts surrounding this critical public health issue. We feel strongly that vaccinating your child is one of the most important things a parent can do for their child’s health as well as the health of the entire community.
We are indeed fortunate that vaccines have become a routine part of disease prevention in America today. Diseases that once threatened the health of many children have been reduced, and in some cases, eliminated through the use of vaccines. However these same advancements, leading to the disappearance of what were once common childhood threats, and fears of possible links between vaccinations and diseases like autism, hyperactivity, and attention deficit disorder have led many parents to the decision not to vaccinate their children.
Many well substantiated studies have found no association between autism and thimerosal, the mercury based vaccine preservative at the center of the most recent vaccine safety concern. Moreover, a recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine found no association between thimerosal and 42 additional neuropsychological disorders. Finally, despite thimerosal’s removal from the vaccine supply several years ago, there has been no improvement in these conditions, arguing strongly against any association between thimerosal and neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism.
Our nation’s high vaccination rate must be maintained in order to truly protect the health and safety of our children and our communities. In 2000, measles vaccination rates in Ireland had fallen in the wake of vaccine safety concerns that were ultimately found baseless. In that year, 1,600 Irish children contracted measles, 350 had to be hospitalized, and three died. One study in the United States estimated that a doubling of the unvaccinated population could increase the risk of measles in vaccinated children by as much as 30%. This alarming statistic must not become a reality while immunizations continue to be one of the safest, most effective means of disease prevention known to medicine today.
We understand how important your child’s health is to you. That’s why we believe it is critical for parents to get the facts about vaccines as you make this treatment decision. Your child’s physician is the best resource for immunization information; we encourage you to discuss any concerns you may have with them at your child’s next check-up. There are also many websites that have credible vaccine information. We have listed those links below.
Actress and mother Amanda Peet is an outspoken advocate for childhood vaccines, National Public Radio (NPR) December 11, 2008 edition: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=97940354
The American Academy of Pediatrics vaccine information resources:
main web site: http://www.cispimmunize.org/
vaccine facts: http://www.cispimmunize.org/fam/facts/SafetyFAQ.pdf
vaccine facts: http://www.cispimmunize.org/fam/facts/FAQ-Internet.pdf
The National Network for Immunization: http://www.immunizationinfo.org/immunization_issues_detail.cfv?id=52
The Centers for Disease Control:
http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/spec-grps/parents.htm
The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia Vaccine Education Center: http://www.chop.edu/consumer/jsp/microsite/microsite.jsp?id=75918
Sincerely,
The Pediatricians and Family PracticePhysicians of DuPage Medical Group