What are Paediatric Conditions?

In general, paediatrics refers to a medicinal branch that is solely meant for children from birth to the early adolescent stages; it is never meant to be a medicinal branch for adults. The term "paediatric" gets its name from the Greek terms "paidi" and "iatros". When it comes paediatrics, therefore, "paidi" means child, while "iatros" means doctor. So, if you take this particular terminology into consideration, "paediatric" literally refers to doctors who generally treat children. Today, this medicinal branch is merely meant for a certain age group that may begin around a baby’s very birth until his completion of the stage of adolescence, regardless of their genders and based on their physiological and psychological makeup.

Paediatricians tend to deal with numerous paediatric conditions, which basically refer to a child’s problems in health. For instance, several paediatricians exist that merely deal with a child’s dental health. Then, there are the paediatric cardiologists that only deal with the paediatric conditions of the heart, in general. On this same note, there are those paediatricians who deal with cancer, such as leukaemia, within smaller children; these doctors are referred to as paediatric oncologists. Therefore, it is possible to estimate – within these particular contexts, at least – that paediatric medicines and paediatricians exist that are merely meant for newborn children until they reach their adolescent stages and move on to regular doctors.

Within the paediatrics field, paediatric nurses also exist that are meant to be there in order to take care of the infants, children, and adolescents as needed. It should be duly noted that such paediatric nurses are merely trained within this one field, in general, to take care of younger patients and help doctors with their work on paediatric conditions; they are not meant to take care of adult patients. In general, paediatrics means paying attention and taking intensive care of those younger patients. Since such younger patients are usually very scared and afraid of particular hospital treatments, paediatricians in various fields can help by offering a higher level of confidence and some self-help to these younger patients whenever they need it or ask for it.

 

The field of paediatrics could also involve surgical operations within younger children. However, these kinds of surgery usually vary from the kind of surgery that adults have to experience and go through. Paediatric surgeons tend to perform paediatric surgery within hospitals that are especially made for children, which are more convenient, comfortable and less serious. The concept that holds the utmost importance here and that would definitely be worth mentioning when it comes to treatments of paediatric conditions would be that younger children do not have the power to make their own decisions. Therefore, any decisions that paediatricians have to make regarding younger patients would need confirmation from the guardians of these patients when involving the kind of surgery and treatment meant to be used on them. Without their guardian’s consent, the paediatricians will not be able to perform their work, as desired and needed.