Dr. John W. Harrington, MD

Pro-biotics are absolutely fine to give to your child, especially after a diarrhea-type illness. The benefits are not astronomical, but they have been studied and can definitely provide some improvement back to normal a little bit faster.

There really is no perfect way to control someone else's anger, the only thing one can do is control their own response. Most children will repeat a behavior if it is reinforced either negatively or positively. Make sure you are not accidentally reinforcing this anger behavior by allowing it to work. The better strategy is to try and find his triggers and then redirect him when he is approaching a trigger point. Otherwise other beneficial things to do center around providing positive praise when he is being good so that it will reinforce this behavior more.

Knowing the age of your daughter would be helpful and any other symptoms, since the differential for prolonged fever is quite large. It is likely she should follow up with her current doctor or if they are stumped with a specialist, especially if it has been more than 1-2 weeks.

Use of a cold shower is not recommended under those circumstances. There is some benefit for a tepid shower that is warm but not hot and can provide a mild lowering to the temperature. The more important aspect is trying to assess why they have a high fever and the age of the child would be important.

Motrin is safe to give to most 3 year-olds with pain or fever. The dose is usually 10mg/kg and that generally translates in 100-200 mg for this age group. The only caution is if the child is dehydrated and not urinating much. Motrin can have a negative effect on one's kidneys if you are not urinating frequently.

Many pediatric offices offer ear piercing. My philosophy is to wait until your child asks you to pierce them unless there is a strong family history of "keloid" formation, then the suggestion would be to pierce before age 1.

Children don't usually read the developmental milestones so they may achieve later milestones before earlier ones. Some infants do not like to crawl, but if they are sitting upright with a straight back and standing then it is likely their gross motor milestones are fine.

There are several likely reasons in this age group that are usually potty training related. Toddler/Young female children like to try and do all their own hygiene in the vaginal area. Therefore it is important for you to make sure the area around the urethra is dry after urination. Many times a small amount of urine gets trapped behind the clitoral hood and keeps the area wet and moist.
This can become red and irritated and cause pain when they urinate. The tell-tale sign is a moist/wet underwear. The treatment is to pat dry and "dab" the area after urinating. If your daughter has had fevers or previous urinary tract infections then getting a urine culture may also be needed.

The short answer is no. Many adults with depression started with symptoms during their adolescent years and the number one reason for completed suicide in adolescents is not treating the depression.

Your first question is a resounding "yes". Generally our goal is to switch most toddlers and children to inhalers with a spacer since it allows a more discreet dose of medication versus a nebulized form. Making sure to utilize the inhalers with the spacer is probably the best way to safely manage his asthma as well as regularly following up with your pediatrician.

Absolutely sounds like signs of a concussion and he should likely be prohibited from playing or wrestling at this time until his symptoms clear. He should be seen by either a sports medicine doctor or anyone who specializes in concussions. Doctors will generally ask many of the questions that you are already answering in the positive (headaches, poor sleep, residual problems with memory, etc.).