Community Paediatric Medical Service

Abidec: a type of multivitamin syrup specifically designed for babies and young children. It contains essential vitamins like A, D, and E, which are important for healthy growth and development.

Absence seizure: a brief period where a child suddenly stops what they’re doing and stares blankly for a few seconds, and may be associated with rapid blinking or small movements. This can often be mistaken for daydreaming.

Array CGH: An array CGH blood test is like a high-tech map of your child's genetic material. It helps doctors look for tiny changes in their DNA that might cause health issues.

Autism: Autism, or Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), is a developmental condition that affects how a person communicates, interacts with others, and experiences the world.

Azithromycin: an antibiotic medication used to treat infections. It is sometimes prescribed to children preventively to stop bacterial infections from happening.

Baclofen: a medication that helps relax muscles and reduce muscle spasms, often used to treat conditions like cerebral palsy or certain types of muscle stiffness in children.

BiPAP: BiPAP, or Bilevel Positive Airway Pressure, is a machine that delivers air through a mask to keep the airways open, making it easier for someone to breathe, especially while sleeping.

Café au lait spot: a light brown birthmark on the skin.

Carbamazepine: an anti-seizure medicine that helps by stabilising electrical activity in the brain, which can prevent seizures and reduce pain.

Cerebral Palsy: a condition that affects movement and muscle coordination in children, typically caused by damage to the brain before or shortly after birth.

Cerebral Palsy Integrated Pathway (CPIP): A follow-up program for children with cerebral palsy or suspected cerebral palsy, aiming to detect changes in muscles and joints early, offering the opportunity for earlier treatment to prevent potential future problems from developing.

Child protection medical: a thorough health examination performed by a community paediatrician when there are concerns of a child’s safety or well-being, such as abuse or neglect.

Child protection services: Child protection services (CPS) are responsible for ensuring the safety and wellbeing of children. They intervene when there are concerns about child abuse, neglect or other forms harm to a child.

Clobazam: a medication that doctors sometimes prescribe to help control seizures.

Clonidine: a medication used to treat conditions like ADHD, high blood pressure, and anxiety in children. It calms the nervous system to help manage symptoms like hyperactivity or elevated blood pressure.

Community Paediatrician: Community paediatricians are doctors that specialise in children's health within the community, providing care, support, and advice in places like clinics and schools to promote healthy development.

CPAP: CPAP, or Continuous Positive Airway Pressure, is a treatment for sleep apnoea. It uses a machine to send a steady stream of air through a mask to keep the airways open, making it easier for someone to breathe, especially while sleeping.

CT scan: A CT scan, short for "computed tomography" scan, is a special type of medical imaging that uses X-rays to help doctors see detailed pictures of the inside of the body.

Diazepam: a medicine that doctors sometimes give to help with things like anxiety, muscle spasms, or seizures. 

Dietician: a healthcare professional who specialises in children's nutrition, helping to ensure they get the right balance of foods for healthy growth and development.

Domperidone: a medication that helps with nausea and vomiting, often prescribed to help regulate digestion and relieve discomfort in children and adults. It is also used in gastro-oesophageal reflux disease.

Down Syndrome​​​​​​: a genetic condition that occurs when a child has an extra copy of chromosome 21. This can lead to some physical features like almond-shaped eyes and a flat facial profile, as well as developmental delays and learning difficulties.

Dysmorphic: Dysmorphic means having physical features that look different from what is typical. These may be present in face, hands or other parts of the body.

Dysphagia: a condition where your child may have difficulty swallowing food or liquids.

Dystonia: a movement disorder where muscles contract uncontrollably, causing repetitive movements or abnormal postures.

Endoscopy: ​​​a medical procedure where a doctor uses a thin, flexible tube with a camera on the end to look inside your child's body, usually to check their stomach, throat, or intestines, to help diagnose or treat health problems.

Epilepsy: a condition where the brain has abnormal electrical activity, leading to repeated seizures. Seizures can cause changes in your child's movements, behaviour, or awareness for a brief period.

Esomeprazole: a medication that helps reduce stomach acid, often prescribed to treat conditions like heartburn, acid reflux, and ulcers in children.

Fine Motor Skills: Fine motor skills are the abilities that allow children to use the small muscles in their hands and fingers to perform tasks like writing, buttoning clothes, and picking up small objects.

Gabapentin: a medicine that doctors sometimes give to help with different kinds of pain or seizures. It works by calming down certain nerves in the body, which can help reduce discomfort or prevent seizures from happening.

Global Developmental Delay: Global developmental delay (GDD) means that your child is taking longer than expected to meet important milestones in more than one area of development.

GMFCS: GMFCS stands for Gross Motor Function Classification System, and it's a way for doctors and therapists to describe how children with cerebral palsy or other motor disorders move and use their bodies. It helps determine where a child is at in terms of physical abilities and what kinds of support or therapy might be helpful.

Gross Motor Skills: Gross motor skills are the abilities that let children use the large muscles in their bodies to perform tasks like crawling, walking, running, jumping, and climbing.

Growth Centile: A paediatric growth centile is a way to track your child's growth compared to other children of the same age, helping to monitor if they're growing at a typical rate or if there are any concerns about their development.

Hypertonia: a condition where a child's muscles are too tight or stiff, making it difficult for them to move normally.

Hypotonia: a medical condition where a child's muscles are weaker and have less tone than usual which may result in the muscles feeling soft and floppy.

Lactulose: ​​​a type of medicine that doctors sometimes give to children when they're having trouble going to the bathroom regularly. It helps soften the stool and makes it easier for them to have a bowel movement.

Lamotrigine: a medication that helps control seizures in people with epilepsy and can also stabilize mood in those with bipolar disorder.

Learning disability: a condition that affects how a child learns and processes information. This may impact skills such as reading and writing.

Levetiracetam: a medicine used to help control seizures in children with epilepsy.

Melatonin: ​​​a natural hormone in the body that helps regulate sleep-wake cycles, and when taken as a supplement, it can help promote sleep in children who may have trouble falling asleep or maintaining a regular sleep schedule.

Movicol: a medicine that helps with constipation in both children and adults. It comes in powder form that you mix with water to make a drink.

MRI scan: An MRI scan, short for “magnetic resonance imaging”, is a special kind of medical test that helps doctors take detailed pictures inside the body, almost like taking a photo with a super high-tech camera.

Nasogastric (NG) tube: A nasogastric tube is a thin, flexible tube that is gently inserted through a child's nose down into their stomach to provide food, medicine, or to remove stomach contents when they can't eat or swallow normally.

Neurodevelopment: the process by which a child's brain and nervous system grow and develop, affecting their ability to learn, think, and interact with the world.

Occupational Therapist: a healthcare professional who helps children develop the skills they need for daily activities, like playing, learning, and self-care, by using therapeutic activities and exercises tailored to their individual needs.

Omeprazole: a medication that helps reduce stomach acid, often prescribed to treat conditions like heartburn, acid reflux, and ulcers in children.

Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy (PEG) tube: a flexible tube inserted directly into a child's stomach through a small opening in the abdomen to provide nutrition when they can't eat or swallow normally.

Physiotherapist: a healthcare professional who helps children improve their movement and physical abilities through exercises and activities, addressing issues like delayed development, injuries, or disabilities.

Portage: a home-based educational support service for young children with developmental delays or disabilities. It provides a structured approach to teaching and supporting the child’s development in various areas.

Scoliosis: a condition where a child's spine curves sideways in an "S" or "C" shape. This curve can cause the shoulders or hips to look uneven. In most cases, scoliosis is mild and doesn't need treatment, but some children might need to wear a brace or have surgery to help straighten their spine.

Senna: a natural remedy often used to help with constipation, especially in children. It works by stimulating the bowel muscles, encouraging bowel movements.

Sepsis: a serious medical condition where the body’s response to infection causes widespread inflammation which may lead to tissue damage, organ failure and potentially life-threatening complications.

Sleep apnoea: a sleep disorder where a child’s breathing repeatedly stops and starts while they’re asleep.

Social worker: a trained professional who helps and provides support for children and families deal with challenges to improve their well-being.

Sodium Valproate: a medicine that doctors sometimes use to help manage seizures or epilepsy in children. It works by stabilizing electrical activity in the brain, which can reduce the frequency and severity of seizures.

Spasticity: a condition where certain muscles are tight or stiff, making movement difficult. It often causes jerky movements and can make it difficult to control muscles.

Speech and Language Therapist: a healthcare worker who helps children with speaking, understanding language, and communicating effectively, providing techniques to improve these skills. They also assess swallowing and eating skills to ensure oral intake is safe for a child and to minimise risk of aspiration.

Tracheostomy: a medical procedure where a small hole is made in the front of the neck and into the windpipe (trachea). It's done to help someone breathe better if they're having trouble with their airway, usually because of a blockage, injury, or severe illness. A tube is placed into the hole to keep the airway open, allowing air to get in and out of the lungs more easily.

Ultrasound scan: a painless medical test that uses sound waves to create pictures of the inside of the body. It's kind of like taking a peek inside to see what's going on without needing any cuts or needles.

Vigabatrin: a medicine that doctors use to help control seizures in people who have epilepsy. It works by calming down the abnormal electrical activity in the brain that causes seizures.

X-ray: a special kind of picture doctors take of the inside of your body to see your bones and other important parts.