THURSDAY, July 22 (HealthDay News) -- The malicious use of alcohol and medicines is an under-recognized form of child abuse, according to a new report.

The U.S. study reviewed cases of pharmaceutical-related child abuse reported to the National Poison Data System between 2000 and 2008. The cases included the use of alcohol, painkillers, cough and cold medicines, sedatives, sleeping pills and antipsychotic medicines.

The findings are scheduled to be published in an upcoming issue of the Journal of Pediatrics.

The review included over 1,400 cases, and nearly 14 percent led to moderate or major consequences for children, including death. In about half of the cases, children were given at least one sedative. On average, 160 cases of pharmaceutical abuse, including two deaths, were reported each year.

Motives for this type of child abuse included punishment, amusement, or a desire for a break from childcare responsibilities, the researcher pointed out in a news release from the journal's publisher.

The findings highlight a serious problem, according to study author Dr. Shan Yin, of the University of Colorado and the Rocky Mountain Poison and Drug Center at Denver Health.

"The malicious administration of pharmaceuticals should be considered an important form of child abuse," Yin stated in the news release.

Pediatricians and emergency medical personnel should be on alert for this type of child abuse, and comprehensive drug screening should be used for children who are suspected victims of abuse, Yin added.

More information

The American Academy of Pediatrics has more about child abuse and neglect  .

TUESDAY, July 20 (HealthDay News) -- Poor children with hearing loss are as likely as other children to receive cochlear implants, but they may experience more complications afterward, a U.S. study has found.

A cochlear implant is a small electronic device that helps provide a sense of sound to deaf people. Recent research suggests that only 55 percent of all U.S. children aged 1 to 6 who are candidates for cochlear implants receive them, according to the authors of the new study in the July issue of the Archives of Otolaryngology -- Head and Neck Surgery.

The researchers looked at 133 Ohio children who were referred for cochlear implants between 1996 and 2008, including 64 who were covered by Medicaid and 69 who were privately insured. There were no differences between the two groups in the likelihood of receiving an initial cochlear implant, age at referral to the implant program, or age at implantation.

But the investigators found that children in the Medicaid group were four times more likely to suffer complications than privately insured children (19.6 percent vs. 4.9 percent, respectively) and were also more likely to experience major complications (11.8 percent vs. 3.3 percent, respectively).

The Medicaid-covered children also missed many more follow-up appointments (35 percent vs. 23 percent) and more consecutive visits (1.9 percent vs. 1.1 percent) than those with private insurance, the report indicated.

"Given the excellent Medicaid coverage in Ohio, our results suggest that eliminating the definite financial obstacle that currently exists in other states across the nation for children from lower-income households would allow all eligible children, regardless of socioeconomic background, access to this powerful technology," study author David T. Chang, of Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, University Hospitals Case Medical Center, Cleveland, and colleagues said in a news release form the journal's publisher.

"However, despite equal access among Medicaid-insured and privately insured patients, there seem to be important differences between the groups post-implantation that influence outcome, namely, decreased follow-up compliance, increased incidence of minor and major complications" and decreased rates of implantation of a second device in the other ear, they added.

"Taken together, these results indicate that centers should further investigate opportunities to minimize these downstream disparities," Chang's team concluded.

More information

The U.S. National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders has more about cochlear implants.

MONDAY, July 19 (HealthDay News) -- Children conceived using in vitro fertilization have a higher risk of developing cancer than do children who were conceived naturally, new research shows.

While the study found the risk of cancer was increased by 42 percent for Swedish youngsters conceived with IVF, the absolute risk of cancer was still quite low.

"We found a roughly 50 percent increased risk for cancer in the IVF children, which means that if the risk without IVF is two per 1,000, it increases to three per 1,000 after IVF," explained study author Dr. Bengt Kallen, a professor emeritus in embryology at the Tornblad Institute at the University of Lund in Sweden.

The findings will be published in the August print issue of Pediatrics, but were posted online on July 19.

In vitro fertilization (IVF) is an assisted reproduction technology. Using eggs harvested from the prospective mother and sperm given by the prospective father, doctors can create human embryos that are then implanted into the mother's uterus.

Babies born using this technology are known to have an increased risk of birth defects and of birth complications, such as preterm birth. Previous research has also suggested that children born through this method of conception may also have an increased risk of cancer.

Using the Swedish Medical Birth Register, the researchers gathered information on almost 27,000 children who were born using IVF in Sweden from 1982 through 2005.

When they looked at the number of children who had cancer, they found that 53 children born from IVF had developed cancer compared to the expected rate of 38 cases of cancer in non-IVF children.

Other factors appeared to influence the risk of cancer as well. Children born before 37 weeks' gestation and those with a low birth weight, respiratory problems or a low Apgar score (a test given at birth to assess a newborn's health), had higher rates of cancer.

A mother's age, weight, smoking status and the number of miscarriages she'd already had didn't appear to affect a child's cancer risk. A multiple birth pregnancy also didn't appear to affect the risk of cancer.

Cancers of the blood, such as acute lymphoblastic leukemia, were the most common, affecting 18 children. The next most common were cancers of the eye or central nervous system, affecting 17 children.

Although it's not clear what's to blame for the increase, the study authors think it's unlikely that IVF is at the root of the increased risk of cancer.

"This study is interesting and thought-provoking, and it adds to our growing knowledge of potential IVF consequences," said Dr. David Cohen, chief of reproductive medicine at the University of Chicago.

"But, it's difficult to think what the biological plausibility would be. If it were something that occurs during the in vitro process or some substance in the media used, I would think that it would cause a much higher number of cancers. This may just be a statistical oddity," he added.

"This is the largest study that I'm aware of, and it does suggest an increased risk of childhood cancers ... but it doesn't really delineate whether it's the IVF process or the patient selection. Is this increase due to the procedure, or is it secondary due to a difference in the patient population?" said Dr. Edward Illions, a reproductive endocrinology specialist at the Montefiore Medical Center in New York City and the Montefiore Institute for Reproductive Medicine in Hartsdale, N.Y.

The three experts do not believe these findings will have a significant influence on a couple's decision to have the IVF procedure.

"The absolute risk is so small that it will hardly influence the decision to get an IVF," Kallen said.

"This adds more information to the [pre-IVF] counseling session, but I don't think it will change the decision. The absolute risk is still well less than 1 percent," said Cohen.

More information

Learn more about in vitro fertilization from the American Pregnancy Association  .

FRIDAY, July 16 (HealthDay News) -- Youngsters and teens who lack social problem-solving skills are more likely to become bullies, victims or both, while those who also do poorly at school are even more likely to become bullies, according to a new study.

The U.S. researchers who reviewed 153 studies from the last 30 years also found that boys bully more than girls.

"A typical bully has trouble resolving problems with others and also has trouble academically. He or she usually has negative attitudes and beliefs about others, feels negatively toward himself [or] herself, comes from a family environment characterized by conflict and poor parenting, perceives school as negative and is negatively influenced by peers," lead author Clayton R. Cook, of Louisiana State University, said in an American Psychological Association news release.

"A typical victim is likely to be aggressive, lack social skills, think negative thoughts, experience difficulties in solving social problems, come from a negative family, school and community environments and be noticeably rejected and isolated by peers," Cook added.

A typical bully-victim (a child or adolescent who bullies and is bullied) has negative self-attitudes and beliefs, trouble with social interaction, poor social problem-solving skills, does poorly in school, is rejected and isolated by peers, and is negatively influenced by peers with whom he or she interacts, the review authors said.

The findings appears in the journal School Psychology Quarterly.

"We hope this knowledge will help us better understand the conditions under which bullying occurs and the consequences it may have for individuals and the other people in the same settings. Ultimately, we want to develop better prevention and intervention strategies to stop the cycle before it begins," Cook said.

Among other things, Cook recommended simultaneous anti-bullying intervention with parents, peers and schools. "Behavioral parent training could be used in the home, while building good peer relationships and problem-solving skills could be offered in the schools, along with academic help for those having trouble in this area," he concluded.

More information

Mental Health America has more about bullying  .