Impairments in communication and social interaction in children with neurofibromatosis type 1: Characteristics and role of ADHD and language delay.

Background: Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) is a multisystem neurocutaneous disorder with increased risk of tumor formation and higher incidence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) than the general population. The aim of the study was to assess the presence of ASD symptoms in young children with NF1 and to examine their potential association with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and speech delay.

Methods: The cohort included 30 patients with NF1 attending the multidisciplinary NF1 clinic of a tertiary pediatric medical center from September 2015 through September 2016.

Selective mutism and abnormal electroencephalography (EEG) tracings.

Epileptic discharges are not considered a part of the clinical picture of selective mutism, and electroencephalography is generally not recommended in its work-up. This report describes 6 children with selective mutism who were found to have a history of epilepsy and abnormal interictal or subclinical electroencephalography recordings. Two of them had benign epilepsy of childhood with centro-temporal spikes.

Late infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis: a new mutation in Arabs.

The neuronal ceroid lipofuscinoses are a group of dominant neurodegenerative, progressive, and fatal disorders characterized clinically by myoclonic epilepsy, in variable association with dementia, ataxia, and visual loss. Neuronal ceroid lipofuscinoses were classified into several phenotypes according to their age of onset: infantile, late infantile, juvenile, and adult. A specific phenotype was named "northern epilepsy," and its onset of signs occurs between ages 5-10 years.

Oral betamethasone versus intramuscular dexamethasone for the treatment of mild to moderate viral croup: a prospective, randomized trial.

Objective: Intramuscular dexamethasone is an effective, but painful, treatment for croup. The effectiveness of betamethasone, an oral, palatable, and equally potent glucocorticoid has not been studied. The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of a single oral dose of betamethasone with intramuscular dexamethasone in the outpatient treatment of mild to moderate croup.