Healthy kids are happy kids. Parents should always consider our Kids’ Health program from various aspects which includes physical, mental, and social well-being. Our GSG specialists will help you to learn more about the common health conditions in children and provide the best possible management for your child. Our program will ensure that your children will grow up in optimal physical and mental health.

Sports injuries

Being physically active is essential for normal growth in children. Besides that, participation in any sports can allow children to enhance their teamwork skills, leadership skills, and motor skills as well as boosting their self-confidence and maintaining discipline. But any sport also raises the risk for injury. Learn about the causes of sports injuries and how to prevent them can help you to create positive sports experience for your child. 

Acute Injuries – Acute injuries occurs suddenly and typically associated with trauma. Most common acute injuries in children are sprains or strains and minor bruises. Severe cases of acute injuries include fracture, torn ligaments, brain injuries such as concussions and spinal cord damage. These injuries tend to happen in contact sports, like basketball, soccer, or football. In order to lower the risk of having acute injuries, proper equipment and safety gear should be used when participating intense and vigorous sports activities.

Overuse Injuries – Repetitive stress on the bones and muscles can lead to overuse injuries. These injuries are very common in sports activities and they can affect bone growth in young athletes. Overuse injuries can be caused by excessive activity, lack of adequate warm-up or training, imbalance between strength and flexibility, technique errors or improper equipment. Unlike acute injuries, the symptoms of overuse injuries can be less dramatic and tend to be overlooked. Therefore, if your child complains of pain or discomfort, it may indicate an underlying problem which requires proper evaluation and diagnosis. Examples of overuse injuries include shin splints, Osgood-Schlatter disease, growth plate fractures, stress fracture, Sever’s disease, and Jumper’s knee.

Reinjuries – Athletes are at greater risk for reinjury if they return to their training or competition before a previous injury has recovered completely. Reinjuries can be prevented by allowing an injury to fully heal with proper treatment and rehabilitation. Rehabilitation is as important as the treatment prescribed by your doctor. It helps the athlete to regain their pre-injury physical fitness and to reduce chances of reinjury.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

ADHD is a brain disorder that typically present in children and can continue into adulthood in some people. This condition often runs in families and affects children before age 12, frequently seen before age 4. Children with ADHD mainly have difficulty with sustained attention, concentration, controlling impulsive behaviors, or overactive. These persistent problems may impact a kid’s everyday life and performance at school.

ADHD is more common in boys, and the behaviors can be different in boys and girls. Affected children can show signs of inattention, hyperactivity/impulsivity or combination of both. Signs of inattention include trouble paying close attention to details, difficulty following instructions, appear not to listen when spoken to directly, fails to finish tasks, often forgetful and easily distracted. Children with signs of hyperactivity and impulsivity may often have difficulty playing or doing an activity quietly, often talks too much, have trouble waiting to take turns, runs or climbs excessively, often fidgets with hands or feet, interrupt on others’ conversations, games or activities and always on the go. Some of the signs discussed here can also be observed in most children and they should never be classified as having ADHD if they naturally have higher activity level than others or have shorter attention spans. A diagnosis of ADHD can only be made if the signs are present in two or more situations, such as at home and at school, and interrupting with the child’s social or academic functioning. There is no single test to diagnose ADHD and often requires several steps to decide if the child is having ADHD. In majority of ADHD cases require a combination of behavior therapy and medication. Get help from an ADHD specialist for proper evaluation and work out the most suitable treatment plan.

Autism

Autism, or autism spectrum disorder (ASD), is a group of neurodevelopmental disorders that impacts communication, social interaction and behavior. It typically begins in early childhood and boys are more likely to be affected. This condition has no exact cause, but both genetics and environmental factors such as infections, pregnancy complications or certain medications may play a role. Besides that, several factors that may contribute to the increased risk of developing autism spectrum disorder are found which include family history of autism spectrum disorder, babies born before 26 weeks of gestation, and some medical conditions.

The signs of autism spectrum disorder usually appear in children at age 2, but in milder signs and symptoms may not be detected until school age. Affected children do not show the same pattern of behavior, therefore it can be challenging to determine its severity at times. But they do share a common feature, which is impairment of the children’s functioning. Children with autism spectrum disorder can have difficulty engaging with others and sharing their thoughts, and trouble developing and maintaining interpersonal relationships. They may show poor nonverbal communication such as making eye contact, lack of facial expression or fail to interpret other people’s tone of voice, facial expressions and body languages. Affected individuals often very resistant to changes, like new clothing, food, or toys and become disturbed at the slightest change. They may watch the same video multiple times or refuse to change their food every meal. They often perform repetitive movements, such as rocking, spinning, and hand flapping. In severe cases, some may even cause self-harm through repetitive behaviors, such as head-banging or biting themselves. As they grow up, some children with least severe problems can eventually lead normal or near-normal lives. They show less behavior disturbances and become more engaged with others.

Asthma

Asthma is a chronic lung disorder that cause inflammation of the airways. The inflamed airways can become swollen and narrowed temporarily, resulting in difficulty breathing. Asthma can develop at any age, and most commonly begins in childhood, particularly at age 5. In some children, asthma resolves when they become adults, but others continue to have it in their adult years. Many things can trigger asthma, including viral infections, smoke, air pollution, pollen, mold, animals, exercise, and changes in weather. But the cause of the asthma respond to these triggers is often unknown, and it is believed to be related to certain genes and weaker immune system.

Not all children have the same asthma symptoms and the severity can vary from episode to episode in the same child. The common signs and symptoms of asthma in children include coughing, especially at night, wheezing, shortness of breath, chest tightness or pain, fatigue, weakness, tightened neck and chest muscles and loss of interest in sports or physical activities. When asthma symptoms become worse than usual, it is known as asthma attack and it can be life-threatening. Asthma attack is an emergency condition and the child typically show significant breathing difficulty, persistent or loud wheezing, gasping for breath, sweaty and pale skin and no improvement after using a quick-relief inhaler. Speak to a specialist for an evaluation if you suspect your child has asthma, because with proper treatment, this condition can be kept under control.

Cerebral palsy

Cerebral palsy (CP) is a group of disorders that affects body movement, muscle coordination, and muscle tone. It is the most common motor disability in children, and it impairs the body’s ability to control his or her muscles. Cerebral palsy is caused by non-progressive brain malformations that occur to developing brain, most often before birth. It can be a result from lack of oxygen during delivery, infections, accidents, medical malpractice and brain injuries.

Cerebral palsy can cause a range of physical disabilities and hinders the ability to learn and understand. The signs and symptoms vary greatly depending on how much the brain was damaged and which part of the brain was affected. For example, some children or adults with cerebral palsy may only have movement difficulties, while others can have intellectual disability or difficulty speaking. Or one person may have total paralysis, while another has partial or incomplete paralysis. Some of the problems with movement and coordination seen in cerebral palsy patients include abnormal muscle tone, stiff muscles with exaggerated reflexes or normal reflexes, lack of muscle coordination, slow, writhing movements, difficulty walking with abnormal gait pattern, tremors, difficulty with precise motions, trouble eating or swallowing, or seizures. People with cerebral palsy may also experience visual or hearing problems, intellectual disabilities, abnormal touch or pain perceptions, mental health conditions or urinary incontinence. There is no cure for cerebral palsy as the damage to the brain is permanent. But this disorder is non-progressive, non-life-threatening and will not cause further degeneration of the brain. In addition, cerebral palsy is manageable using proper treatment and therapy to maximize function and improve quality of life.

Growth disorders

Ever wonder why your child is much shorter or much taller than other kids in his or her age? And whether this is normal? Some kids just grow more slowly than others and it is normal. They can either have a delayed maturation or shorter parents. These kids normally don’t have any signs or symptoms of diseases that affect growth and they usually catch up to their peers when they reach adult height if they enter puberty later than average. However, in some children, the growth delay is caused by a growth disorder. Growth disorders are conditions that cause abnormal growth in children. These conditions comprised of hormonal disorders, systemic diseases, genetic disorders and congenital problems.

Scoliosis

Scoliosis is a back condition in which there is a sideways curvature of the spine that is usually three-dimensional. It can affect the lumbar spine, thoracic spine or go from the upper to lower part of the spine known as the thoracolumbar region. The curve can appear as either a “C” shape or “S” shape. Scoliosis can be classified as non-structural and structural. A non-structural scoliosis is also called as functional or postural scoliosis, whereby the curve changes or goes away when the individual bends forwards or sideways. A functional scoliosis is usually mild and can be due to leg length discrepancies, pelvic misalignment, disc herniation, muscle spasm or imbalance. This type of scoliosis can be corrected by treating the primary cause. In the cases of a structural scoliosis, the curve is more rigid and doesn’t go away when the person changes position. The cause of a structural scoliosis is mostly unknown or idiopathic and it is the most common cause of scoliosis. Structural scoliosis can also be secondary to congenital disorders, neuromuscular conditions, trauma, tumor, or metabolic disorders.

Scoliosis develops mainly in children between the ages of 10 and 16 during the growth spurt of puberty and early adolescence. It can affect boys and girls equally but in girls, the risk of progression of the curve tends to be greater. Most people with scoliosis do not have pain, hence mild scoliosis can develop without being noticed by the child or the parents. However, in cases with severe curvature, it can interfere with breathing or causing chronic pain in the back or heart problems. If you suspect your child may have a scoliosis, there are a few signs that you can look out for such as asymmetrical shoulders, pelvis, waist or ribs, upper or lower back hump, prominent shoulder blade or a visible curve. When a scoliosis is suspected, an X-ray should be performed to confirm the diagnosis. The treatment for scoliosis depends upon the type of condition, severity and progression of the curve, skeletal maturity, sex and age of the patient.

Sleep disorders

Sleep is important for optimal health, especially for growing kids. Children and adolescents require at least nine hours of sleep each day. A lack of sleep can have adverse effects on children’s growth and development, their performance at school, sports activities and social relationships. Just like adults, children can also suffer from sleep disorders. There are several signs of a sleep problem in children, including snoring, difficulty falling asleep, difficulty with sleeping through the night, nightmares, sleep walking, excessive daytime sleepiness and breathing pauses during sleep. Parents should be aware of the sleep pattern of their children and seek professional help if they discover abnormality in the sleep of their children.

Learning disabilities

Learning disabilities are a group of disorders that cause interference with reading, writing, speaking, comprehension, reasoning or mathematics. While most kids struggle with homework at some point, that does not mean they have learning disabilities. However, a child with learning disability will continue to have problem learning despite appropriate teaching and intervention, and he or she has trouble coping independently in daily life. Children with learning disabilities are not dumb or having problem with intelligence or motivation, they simply receive and interpret things differently. Although a learning disability cannot be cured, children with learning disabilities can still achieve success in school, at work, in the community and in relationships with proper support and treatment.

Learning disabilities have wide range of signs and symptoms, and they vary depending on the type of learning disabilities a person has. Here are some of the examples of learning disabilities below:

Dyslexia – A specific learning disability with difficulty reading, writing, spelling and speaking.

Dyscalculia – A specific learning disability with difficulty learning math facts, understanding and organizing numbers, counting and trouble telling time.

Dysgraphia – A specific learning disability that impacts handwriting ability and fine motor skills, with difficulty copying letters and words properly, poor spelling, poor spatial planning on paper and difficulty composing writing.

Dysphasia – A specific learning disability that cause difficulty with language, with problems understanding spoken language and poor reading comprehension.

Auditory Processing Disorder – A condition that affects normal interpretation and processing of sound. People who are affected have normal hearing, but the brain cannot make sense of what they hear or recognizing the subtle differences between sounds in words.

Visual Processing Disorder – A condition that affects normal interpretation of visual information, which can lead to huge impact on a wide range of skills.    Children with this disorder often have problems reading, processing numbers, pictures, symbols or maps as well as trouble drawing or copying.