THURSDAY, Feb. 4 (HealthDay News) -- Rates of HIV infection in infants are significantly higher among blacks and Hispanics than whites, and preventive measures are needed to reduce the disparity, a new government report says.

Although the number of HIV-infected infants has declined overall, among black babies, the rate of perinatal HIV infection -- meaning transmission at the time of birth -- is 23 times higher than for whites, and among Hispanics, the rate is four times higher, according to findings published in the Feb. 5 issue of the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The average rate of perinatal infection in the United States is 2.7 per 100,000 live births, the report indicates. For blacks, the rate is 12.3 per 100,000; for Hispanics, 2.0 per 100,000; and for whites, 0.5 per 100,000.

Overall, while black and Hispanic children under age 1 account for only 37 percent of the population, they represent 85 percent of all perinatal HIV diagnoses, the authors noted.

The researchers, who analyzed data from 34 states from 2004 to 2007, noted that transmission from an HIV-infected mother to her child can be significantly reduced through preventive measures.

And they noted some good news: The annual rate of perinatal HIV diagnosis dropped between 2004 and 2007, dipping from 14.8 to 10.2 per 100,000 among blacks and from 2.9 to 1.7 per 100,000 in Hispanics.

But further reductions are necessary and achievable, the authors said, pointing to a transmission goal of less than 1 percent for infants born to HIV-infected women and fewer than one transmission per 100,000 live births.

Primary HIV prevention in women is key, the authors noted, and efforts should be specifically directed towards black and Hispanic women. All HIV-positive women who are pregnant should have access to quality health care and take advantage of preventive measures, including early treatment with antiretroviral medications, the report stated.

For the best outcomes, the authors recommend the following:

• HIV infection should be diagnosed before or early in pregnancy
• All moms-to-be should receive prenatal care
• HIV-positive women should follow an antiretroviral medication regimen throughout pregnancy
• A cesarean delivery should be scheduled at 38 weeks' gestation if the virus has not been suppressed
• Antiretroviral medication should be taken during labor and delivery
• Newborns exposed to HIV should receive antiretroviral medication within the first hours after birth and for the first six weeks of life.

Overall, "the total number of annual perinatal HIV infections in the United States has decreased approximately 90 percent since 1991," the CDC authors wrote in their report.

More information

The Nemours Foundation has more about HIV and AIDS  .

WEDNESDAY, Feb. 3 (HealthDay News) -- Following the introduction of Wii to video gaming in 2006, more than just the ligaments and tendons in the hands of players are getting injured these days: a new report details foot injuries that have been incurred while playing with the Wii.

"Before these types of games were introduced, patients typically presented with ligament injuries of the hand from intensive use of [video game] hand-held controls," noted Karen A. Eley. A plastic surgery resident and doctoral candidate at Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust in Great Britain, she outlined the specific nature of what is now known as "Wiiitis" in a letter in the Feb. 4 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

"Now, the injuries seem to affect any region of the body," Eley added.

In her commentary, Eley said that the so-called "Nintendinitis" of the 1990s -- involving thumb tendon pain -- has given way to an increasing number of foot-related injuries in conjunction with the rise of the popularity of the Wii.

Such injuries can result, for example, when otherwise healthy players fall off special pressure-sensitive "balance boards" that are raised two inches off the ground and are designed to read the body movements of gamers without the need for hand controls.

This type of fall has been seen to result in soft-tissue swelling, dislocations, muscle pulls and even small fractures -- as highlighted by Eley in recounting the case of a 14-year-old girl who sought emergency medical care for such injuries at a British hospital.

Head injuries are another aspect of Wiiitis, Eley pointed out, resulting from the grouping of gamers in confined spaces, prompting unintentional bumping and striking.

Her observations notwithstanding, Eley said that Wiiitis injuries are not yet a frequent hazard of gaming.

"I have not encountered many injuries of this nature," she stressed. "I think that in some respects some people are just rather unlucky. I am sure that many more people twist their ankles when they miss their footing on the Wii-fit balance boards, but the injury is not significant enough to seek medical treatment. We only see the ones that are particularly severe."

And on a more positive note, Eley added that Wii does, in fact, encourage people who might otherwise be sedentary to get up and move.

"And as with any activity, it is this group that are more likely to sustain strains and sprains," she said. "[But] hopefully, playing these games will result in people becoming interested in participating in exercise, aiding in our fight against obesity, heart disease and diabetes."

Robert Gotlin, director of the Sports Rehabilitation department at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York City, concurred with Eley's sense that while the risk for injury due to Wii gaming is real, it is not a cause for alarm.

"Any physical activity or recreational fad always brings with it the risk of newfound injuries. We've seen this across the board, ranging from the so-called 'BlackBerry thumb' to Nintendo wrist injuries," Gotlin observed.

"And even though everything carries some risk -- from jumping off a couch to stepping off a curb -- in this case Wii largely involves kids, so we should try to make sure they are safe," Gotlin noted. "That means -- like any activity -- it should not be overdone. And it should be part of a kid's life, not their whole life. And it should come with some parental guidance."

He added, "But then the question is whether kids -- who at the age of 7, 8 or 9 are just becoming masters of their own neuromuscular control -- get a benefit learning about balance and movement through Wii games that outweighs their risk for injury? Well, I would say that it certainly beats being sedentary and sitting on the couch. And the reality is that problems seem to happen to just a few kids, and the risk-benefit is very low. So I would not go overboard with concern."

More information

For more on fitness and stretching exercises, visit the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

TUESDAY, Feb. 2 (HealthDay News) -- Parents who make regular visits to the dentist are more likely to take their children to the dentist, a new study shows.

Using data from a recent National Health Interview Study on 6,107 children aged 2 to 17, and their parents, researchers found that 77 percent of children and 64 percent of parents had seen a dentist in the previous year.

Kids whose parents saw a dentist were more likely to have seen a dentist, too. About 86 percent of children whose parents had a dental visit during the preceding year had a dental exam, compared to about 63 percent of the children whose parents hadn't, the study authors found.

With cavities in children on the rise, programs that encourage kids to take care of their teeth should also target their parents, said study author Dr. Inyang Isong, a pediatrician and research fellow at Massachusetts General Hospital Center for Child and Adolescent Health Policy.

"Strategies to promote oral health should focus on the whole family," Isong said.

In the study, about 76 percent of the parents were employed, and the same number had health insurance. But even among those with health coverage, financial barriers kept some families out of the dentist's chair, Isong said.

Among parents who delayed dental care because of cost, 27 percent of their children also had dental care deferred.

Tooth decay is one of the most common chronic diseases in the United States, especially among minority and lower-income kids, according to background information in the study released online Feb. 1 in advance of publication in the March print issue of Pediatrics.

Mary Hayes, a pediatric dentist in Chicago and a spokewoman for the American Dental Association, said the study reflects what she sees in practice.

"We know for so many different behaviors that children pick up on their parents," Hayes said. "In order for good oral health in children to occur, parents need to value oral health as well."

The American Dental Association recommends children have their first dental visit by their first birthday. Since many parents don't think to take their partially toothless infant to the dentist, a move has developed in recent years to teach pediatricians and other non-dental health-care providers about preventive dental care, Hayes said.

State Medicaid programs, for example, have started paying physicians to apply topical fluoride treatments during well-child visits, according to a second study in the same journal by researchers at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

While about 70 percent of doctors taking part in a Medicaid demonstration project reported they provided preventive dental care on a routine basis, challenges in getting doctors on board included difficulty in applying the varnish, difficulty integrating dental care into the practice and resistance among staff, the researchers noted.

Hayes said having primary-care doctors more involved in preventive dental care is a good idea. For too long, oral health and the health of the rest of the body have been treated as separate concerns, when the condition of the teeth and the gums actually is an indication of overall health.

"I do believe we need to be getting pediatricians more aware of oral health issues," Hayes said. "These projects are trying to figure out how to connect the disciplines of dentistry and medicine, and that makes sense for us all as patients."

One hurdle, however, is that oral health care training in medical school is minimal, according to a third study in the same journal by researchers from Children's Mercy Hospital and Clinics in Kansas City, Mo. Their study found that even Web-based training for pediatric residents could help them learn the skills to do a basic oral exam, though also getting hands-on treatment from a dentist is better.

More information

The American Academy of Family Physicians   has more on oral health for children.

TUESDAY, Feb. 2 (HealthDay News) -- Lead may play a role in the development of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), new research suggests.

Genes are believed to account for as much as 70 percent of ADHD in children. Researchers trying to determine the cause of the other 30 percent of cases consider lead a prime suspect among possible environmental causes, according to the American Association of Psychological Science.

Lead, a neurotoxin, is present in trace amounts in such things as soil, drinking water, children's costume jewelry and imported candies. Nearly all children in the United States have measurable levels of lead in their bodies, the association reports.

In one of two recent studies examining the possible link between lead and ADHD, the researchers found that children with ADHD had slightly higher levels of lead in their blood than did children without ADHD. The second study showed an association between elevated levels of lead in children's blood and parent/teacher ratings of ADHD symptoms, including both hyperactivity and attention problems.

In both studies, the link between lead and ADHD was independent of the children's IQ, family income, race or whether their mothers had smoked during pregnancy.

The findings strongly suggest that lead may be a cause of ADHD, according to Joel Nigg, a psychological scientist at Oregon Health & Science University. He said that lead might disrupt brain activity in a way that leads to hyperactivity and attention problems.

The studies are published in the February issue of the journal Current Directions in Psychological Science.

More information

The U.S. National Institute of Mental Health has more about ADHD.