This book addresses the unique healthcare needs of adults with chronic childhood illnesses. It presents a model of primary and secondary prevention for emerging adulthood—primary prevention in which all young adults are screened for high-risk behaviors and health needs and secondary prevention in which young adults with chronic childhood conditions are optimized through coordinated care, connections to community resources and social/family support. This book is organized in five parts. Part I provides a detailed overview of the health care transition from pediatrics to adult medicine from both a policy and practice perspective. In Part II, the concept of emerging adulthood as a developmental period is explored and strategies for providing improved comprehensive care for this age group are discussed. Part III reviews specific chronic childhood conditions, such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, autism, cystic fibrosis, and diabetes mellitus, and offers clinical cases and summary reports that can be used as a quick guides to each condition. In Part IV, additional clinical considerations that are not necessarily condition-specific but are highly relevant to the care of young adults with chronic childhood conditions are examined. Part V describes the socio-legal issues involved in caring for this population. Care of Adults with Chronic Childhood Conditions provides primary care providers with a new framework for the care of young adults and identifies opportunities to influence patient health outcomes over a life trajectory.

There has been a significant increase in the prevalence of certain chronic disorders among children and adolescents. For example, health experts warn of an epidemic of diabetes mellitus due to an increase in the sedentary life style and poor nutrition of children. There are many questions still to be addressed in the study of chronic disorders among children and adolescents.What are the risk factors associated with chronic diseases in these populations?What are the major complications that contribute to disability and increased health care utilization and costs? What impact do chronic diseases have on the psychosocial development? What are the most effective diagnostic, treatment,and rehabilitation strategies? How can patient education and self-management activities be improved to help children and adolescents improve compliance with treatment regimens? How can parents and other family members become more involved in assessment and management? In what ways can peers, schools,religious institutions, and other organizations help children and adolescent scope with their chronic disease? This book addresses these questions by focusing on how eight chronic disorders affect health care utilization, costs, coping, and health outcomes in children and adolescents.Research studies are used to illustrate wide range of topics from the epidemiology of chronic diseases in children and adolescents, health care utilization and costs, to treatment outcomes, disability, and family processes.Case studies from a clinical psychologist’s private practice are used to clarify major psychosocial issues underlying chronic diseases in these populations. Chapter One analyzes the epidemiology of eight chronic conditions in children and adolescents. Data on the prevalence of diseases and associated risk factors are stressed in this chapter. Health care planners can use these analyses to improve primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention through more effective uses of health care resources. Chapter Two examines the latest information on health care utilization and costs for children and adolescents that can point to a more efficient means of reducing the rising health care costs associated with the treatment of chronic diseases. In the remaining chapters, the eight chronic diseases are evaluated in terms of five major issues. First, the latest trends in complications associated with each chronic condition are explored.Second, the impact of each disease on disability and psychosocial development of children and adolescents are analyzed. Third, recent research findings on diagnosis,treatment, and rehabilitation strategies are discussed. Fourth, new trends in patient education and self-management are presented. Fifth, each chapter will assess the role of family, peers, schools, and other organizations in helping children and adolescents cope with their chronic disorders. Dr. Mark L. Goldstein, a clinical psychologist, reviews the literature and uses composite case studies from his practice to illustrate the impact of these trends on how children and adolescents manage chronic disease. The information in this book will be relevant to a wide range of professionals and students in the fields of pediatrics, medicine, nursing, public health, mental health, social work,education, health administration, health policy, and social sciences.

This new book is a practical guide for physicians and other professionals who care for children and adolescents with complex, chronic diseases. These disorders are a challenge because they require multiple services, the information about the disorders are scattered, and the exact treatments are not available in standard texts. To overcome these barriers, this book provides a summary of the clinical features, laboratory diagnosis, and the general and specific treatments needed for optimal care of these children. The key points are presented in a clear, succinct format, providing recommendations that can be implemented within the time span of an office or emergency room visit. Furthermore, pitfalls that are encountered are emphasized and alternatives are suggested. For example, this resource outlines: - Routine and special vaccines that are needed or contraindicated for these children - Interactions between drugs and diseases that could result in surprising adverse effects - Care of medical devices such as gastrostomy tube and nebulizer machine - Specific medical treatment with the appropriate medication dosage - Chronic wound care - Education and rehabilitation recommendations - Patient support groups This book not only provides a disease specific guide, but also instructions for creating a medical home, information on disease-drug interactions, and references for further study.

Written by leading mental health professionals, this warm and accessible parenting book for children with chronic illnesses offers clear, practical guidance for all aspects of the journey. When you're focused on ensuring your child gets the best possible treatments for their symptoms, it's easy to overlook or dismiss the impact the illness can have on your relationships and emotions. This book places your psychological well-being front and center, so you can be the best caregiver possible for your child.

Management of chronic illness in children and adolescents often is a multifaceted challenge that requires the attention and expertise of individuals from a variety of disciplines that include psychology, psychiatry, social work, and medicine. The aim of this book is to provide readers with a practical overview of the definitions, characteristics, theories and models, diagnostic and treatment indications, and relevant aspects and methods of evidence-based psychosocial treatments for chronic illness in children and adolescents. Although treatments and research for chronic conditions are reviewed in general, particular attention is directed at asthma, cancer, cystic fibrosis, diabetes mellitus, and sickle cell disease due to the high incidence of these chronic diseases among children and adolescents. Case vignettes and suggestions for further reading are provided for the interested reader.

Chronic Disease in the Twentieth Century challenges the conventional wisdom that the concept of chronic disease emerged because medicine's ability to cure infectious disease led to changing patterns of disease. Instead, it suggests, the concept was constructed and has evolved to serve a variety of political and social purposes. How and why the concept developed differently in the United States, an United Kingdom, and France are central concerns of this work. While an international consensus now exists, the different paths taken by these three countries continue to exert profound influence. This book seeks to explain why, among the innumerable problems faced by societies, some problems in some places become viewed as critical public issues that shape health policy. -- from back cover.