Dr. Harlan S Patterson M.D.

What is cystic fibrosis?It is a genetic disease that affects both young children and adults. It mainly affects the lungs and the digestive system. When a child inherits two copies of the genes responsible for cystic fibrosis, the child develops the disease.The complications associated with the...

Children, especially the younger ones are prone to have croup. It is a viral infection that causes swelling and inflammation of the vocal cords. Croup is characterized by a bad cough that resembles a barking seal and difficulty in breathing. The virus that causes croup is also the same virus that...

Croup is a common respiratory problem prevailing in young children that tends to develop in the fall or winter. It describes a deep and barking cough that is caused by an upper respiratory infection that blocks a child's ability to breathe. Its characteristic symptom is harsh coughing...

A new study has shown that infants who are 3-months-old and have vitamin D levels lower than 25 nanomoles per liter (nmol/L) are two times more likely to have respiratory infections, when compared to children who have levels above 75 nmol/L. In this study, published in the journal Pediatrics,...

A risk factor could be any one of numerous influences that make you prone to developing cancer. There are unavoidable factors that you have no protection against. Some of these are a family history of genetically inherited traits, and age and gender issues. There are wholly avoidable factors such...

A cough is described as a sudden explosive exhalation of air. It is basically a body's defense mechanism to protect and clear the airways from inhaled foreign materials. People may also voluntarily or spontaneously cough. Coughs often vary and may be characterized by productive (chesty or wet) or...