Inside Pediatrics Spring/Summer 2024

GASTROENTEROLOGY

ORTHOPEDICS

Grant paves way for IBD research

New XR technology improving patient care Children’s of Alabama has new XR technology in its sports medicine clinic, and orthopedic specialist Kevin Williams, M.D. , says it’s a game-changer, enabling specialists to quickly determine the best treatments to get young patients back to their chosen game. The new equipment, which is useful in about 75% of pediatric cases, includes an easily positioned moveable arm with a 135-degree range. The equipment has larger plates that can capture wider images of patients’ bones and soft tissue while “taking into account features of the joints above and below, allowing more comprehensive images while using less radiation,” Williams said. “There’s also a dynamic mode that allows us to take live, fluoroscopic images or continuous X-ray to evaluate a bone or joint dynamically,” he explained. “This is crucial when we’re trying to inject a joint or aspirate it to get fluid out. The whole system is smaller and more modern, which improves ease of use dramatically.”

In an effort to confront the challenges faced by patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation recently received a transformative grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This comprehensive five-year project marks a pivotal collaboration with Children’s of Alabama and the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), targeting the identification and resolution of barriers hindering the diagnosis and

care of individuals affected by IBD. Traci Jester, M.D. , associate professor in the Division of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition at UAB, is a project

co-investigator. The project holds promise in transforming the approach to IBD management. The study aims to comprehensively address barriers to timely diagnosis and care through data collection initiatives. As the study unfolds over its five-year span, the final

phase will focus on developing and testing strategic interventions that aim to bridge the gaps in disease awareness among the public and specific demographics while also focusing on educating primary care providers to ensure timely referrals to specialists.

UROLOGY

Using games to help with surgical robot training

The system’s longer plates also help Williams and his colleagues evaluate leg alignment in patients who seek care for rotational injuries, congenital knock knees or bowed legs. This assessment can dictate if a patient needs bracing, physical therapy or even surgery in which bones may need to be broken and put back into place to align them better for the future and prevent degenerative problems.

When the Children’s of Alabama urology department acquired its first Da Vinci surgical robot in January 2023, Carmen Tong, D.O. , pediatric urologist at Children’s of Alabama, developed a training curriculum that brings in classic children’s games to help residents develop their skills with the new technology. “There’s a movement in urology to ‘gamify’ the robot,” Tong said. “Such training is vital to the safety of our patients.” Surgeons are very competitive, she said. “Gamification taps into our competitive side and allows us to push and encourage each other to improve. It helps with camaraderie.” Indeed, studies show that gamification, whether with actual games like Tong is using or embedding competitions and rewards into skill development, enhances resident engagement. The residents complete online modules and practice surgeries via a

PULMONOLOGY

Children’s adds flexible bronchoscopic cryotherapy

In 2023, the Children’s pulmonology team began using flexible bronchoscopic cryotherapy, an interventional pulmonology procedure that, until recently, was offered only to adult patients. It involves performing a bronchoscopy and then using a special probe to freeze a foreign body, piece of tissue or blood clot and pull it out for examination. “Previously, it could take hours because we often wouldn’t get the whole thing at once,” pediatric pulmonologist Ryne Simpson, M.D. , said. “Now we’re able to complete these procedures in significantly less time, which has been pretty amazing for the patients.” It’s one example of interventional pulmonology becoming more prevalent in pediatrics.

video game-type simulator. Then, every two months, Tong brings in the actual games,

and the residents compete against each other using the robotic arm in place of their own hands. Even though the gaming sessions

aren’t mandatory, “almost all residents participate.” That, she said, “says a lot about the program’s success.”

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Inside Pediatrics | Children’s of Alabama