Comparison of Length of Stay Between Children Admitted to an Observation Versus Inpatient Unit.

Objectives: Many children who require hospitalization are ideal candidates for care in pediatric observation units (POUs) rather than inpatient pediatric units. Differences in outcomes between children cared for in these 2 practice settings have not been thoroughly evaluated.

Methods: In this retrospective cohort study, children aged 0 to 18 years admitted to a POU at a community hospital or inpatient unit at a children's hospital were enrolled if they met specific clinical criteria.

Disruption of cue-potentiated feeding in mice with blocked ghrelin signaling.

The peptide hormone ghrelin regulates a variety of eating behaviors. Not only does it potently increase intake of freely-available food, but it also shifts food preference toward diets rich in fat, enhances operant responding for food rewards, and induces conditioned place preference for food rewards. Here, we postulated that ghrelin also enables cue-potentiated feeding, in which eating is enhanced upon presentation of a food-conditioned stimulus.