The statistical account of language acquisition asserts that language is learned through computations on the statistical regularities present in natural languages. This type of account can predict variability in language development measures as arising from individual differences in extracting this statistical information. Given that statistical learning has been attested across different domains and modalities, a central question is which modality is more tightly yoked with language skills. The results of a scoping review, which aimed for the first time at identifying the evidence of the association between statistical learning skills and language outcomes in typically developing infants and children, provide preliminary support for the statistical learning account of language acquisition, mostly in the domain of lexical outcomes, indicating that typically developing infants and children with stronger auditory and audio-visual statistical learning skills perform better on lexical competence tasks. The results also suggest that the relevance of statistical learning skills for language development is dependent on sensory modality.

Premature infants, after anti-vascular endothelial growth factor injections for retinopathy of prematurity, have persistent peripheral avascular retina (PAR). PAR is ablated with laser; however, physiologic growth of the retinal vasculature in the long term has not been measured. The purposes of this study were to measure retinal vessel growth after treatment with intravitreal bevacizumab (IVB) for retinopathy of prematurity, using serial fluorescein angiography (FA), until age 3 years, and to assess the timing for providing laser ablation in PAR.
Data from an observational, longitudinal clinical study were collected. Angiographic images of eyes treated with IVB were included; imaging data from laser photocoagulation were excluded. All eyes underwent initial examination under general anesthesia with FA and photographic imaging. The retinal vessel length was measured from the temporal margin of the optic disc passing through the foveal center, and the lengths at subsequent FA were compared. To compare the changes in retinal vessel length over time in individual eyes, a paired-sample t test was performed.
FA images from 70 eyes (35 infants) treated with IVB were available. A total of 150 FA images were available for review; data from 125 images of good quality were used for analysis. The mean postmenstrual ages (PMAs) at first, second, third, and fourth FA were 66.2, 100.9, 135.1, and 180.7 weeks, respectively. The mean retinal vessel length was 14.177 mm at first FA and 13.199 mm at fourth FA (PMA range, 42...234 weeks). Retinal vascular lengths of individual eyes compared over time showed no statistically significant growth from the first FA to age 3 years. The changes in retinal vessel length from first to second FA were -0.117 ± 0.79 mm (p = 0.42; n = 30); from first to third FA, +0.060 ± 0.85 mm (p = 0.79; n = 15); and first to fourth FA, -0.404 ± 1.32 mm (p = 0.45; n = 7).
Beyond 65 weeks\' PMA, no meaningful retinal vascular growth occurred after IVB up to age 3 years, guiding the timing for physicians if laser photocoagulation is being considered. Future studies are needed to address retinal growth changes in the growing eyes of infants.

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We have previously found well-maintained renal function in children with new-onset chronic liver disease. In this study, we investigated their renal function during long-term follow-up of the disease.
In a study of 289 children with chronic liver disease, renal function was investigated as glomerular filtration rate (GFR) measured as clearance of inulin or iohexol. Yearly change in GFR was calculated based on a linear mixed model. The data were analysed with regard to different subgroups of liver disease and with regard to the outcome.
The initially well-preserved renal function remained so in most patients during the observation period, even in children with progressive liver disease leading to decompensation. The greatest fall in GFR occurred in patients with initial hyperfiltration. Cholestasis seemed to have a nephroprotective effect.
Chronic liver disease in childhood seems to have less impact on renal function than believed earlier, at least as long as the liver function remains compensated. Regular renal check-ups remain an essential tool for optimal patient care. Hyperfiltration seems to predict decline in renal function. Otherwise no further reliable prognostic markers were found in patients whose liver disease was not decompensated.

Plexiform cellular schwannoma (PCS) is very rare, and it is not completely understood. We present our experience with 7 additional cases of PCS in infancy and childhood to further characterize its distinctive clinicopathological features. There were 5 females and 2 males with a mean age of 28 months (ranging, 2 months to 8 years). The involved sites included the left forearm (n = 2), sacrococcygeal region (n = 2), retroperitoneum (n = 1), thoracic spinal canal and thoracic cavity (n = 1), and neck (n = 1). Tumor sizes ranged from 3 to 13 cm in maximum diameter (mean, 7.1 cm). Histologically, all tumors consisted of abundant spindle cells arranged in a multinodular or plexiform growth pattern, possessing elongated, hyperchromatic nuclei and pale eosinophilic cytoplasm with indistinct cell margins. Mitotic figures were easily identified, with a mean count of 4 per 10 consecutive high power fields (HPF). Immunohistochemically, all tumors were strongly and diffusely positive for S100 protein, SOX10 and H3K27me3. The Ki-67 index ranged from 5% to 30% (mean, 15%). Follow-up (available in 6 cases) revealed that 5 patients experienced local recurrence and were treated by re-excision. There was no evidence of recurrence and metastasis in 3 patients, and the other 2 were alive with the disease. In conclusion, PCS is an uncommon nerve sheath tumor predominantly occurring in infants and children, featuring a plexiform or multinodular growth pattern and exhibiting a tendency toward local recurrence. PCS is easily mistaken as malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor (MPNST) due to its locally aggressive behaviors and worrisome features, including hypercellularity, hyperchromatism and high proliferative activity. Increased awareness of its potential occurrence and greater familiarity with its characteristic features are helpful for both clinicians and pathologists to avoid misdiagnosis and unnecessary overtreatment.

BACKGROUND: Infantile myofibromatosis (IM) is a rare benign soft tissue tumor and often a self-limiting disease but rarely includes life-threatening complications. Little is known about optimal treatment of primary localized (LD) and multifocal disease (MFD).
METHODS: Treatment and outcome of 95 children with IM registered within five Cooperative Weichteilsarkom Studiengruppe (CWS) trials and one registry (1981-2016) were evaluated.
RESULTS: LD was diagnosed in 71 patients at a median age of 0.4 years (range 0.0-17.7). MFD was present in 24 patients. The mainstay of treatment was watch-and-wait strategy (w&w) after initial biopsy or resection. Low-dose chemotherapy (CHT) was administered to 16/71 (23%) patients with LD and eight of 24 (33%) patients with MFD, imatinib was added in two. A delayed resection was possible in eight of 71 (11%) and five of 24 (21%) patients with LD and MFD, respectively. Overall, patients were alive in complete remission (n = 77) and partial remission (n = 10) at a median follow-up time of 3.4 years after diagnosis (range 0.01-19.4); no data available (n = 5). Three patients died of progressive disease (PD) despite CHT. Gender, tumor size, and location correlated with a favorable event-free survival (EFS) in patients with LD. The 5-year EFS and overall survival of patients with LD were 73% (±12, confidence interval [CI] 95%) and 95% (±6, CI 95%), respectively; for MFD 51% (±22, CI 95%) and 95% (±10, CI 95%).
CONCLUSIONS: Prognosis is excellent in patients with LD and MFD. Targeted treatment needs to be evaluated for rare fatal PD.

Vitamin D deficiency is a serious public health issue in the United Kingdom. Those at increased risk, such as pregnant women, children under 5 years and people from ethnic groups with dark skin, are not all achieving their recommended vitamin D. Effective vitamin D education is warranted. A qualitative study was undertaken to evaluate the acceptability and understanding of a vitamin D infographic, developed using recommendations from previous research. Fifteen parents/carers, recruited through local playgroups and adverts on popular parent websites, participated in focus groups and telephone interviews. The majority were female, White British and educated to degree level. A thematic analysis methodology was applied. The findings indicated that understanding and acceptability of the infographic were satisfactory, but improvements were recommended to aid interpretation and create more accessible information. These included additional content (what vitamin D is; other sources; its health benefits; methods/doses for administration and scientific symbols used) and improved presentation (eye-catching, less text, simpler language, more images and a logo). Once finalized, the infographic could be a useful tool to educate families around vitamin D supplementation guidelines, support the UK Healthy Start vitamins scheme and help improve vitamin D status for pregnant and lactating women and young children.

We examined associations between the timing of The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) enrollment and responsive feeding and assessed food security as a possible effect modifier. We used data from the nationally representative WIC Infant and Toddler Feeding Practices Study-2. Our sample includes women-infant dyads interviewed through the first 13 months of age (n = 1672). We dichotomized WIC enrollment as occurring prenatally or after childbirth. The responsive feeding outcome was feeding on demand versus feeding on schedule. We used covariate-adjusted logistic regressions. Of women, 61.8% had a high school education or less and 62.9% lived at 75% or less of the federal poverty guideline. The majority (84.5%) of women enrolled in WIC before childbirth. In unadjusted estimates, 34% of women who enrolled prenatally practiced responsive feeding, compared to 25% of women who enrolled after childbirth. We found no evidence of food security as an effect modifier. In adjusted estimates, women who enrolled in WIC prenatally had 78% higher odds of practicing responsive feeding (OR: 1.78, 95% CI: 1.16, 2.73), compared to women who enrolled after childbirth. Prenatal enrollment in WIC was associated with higher odds of responsive feeding. Future studies should examine how the timing of WIC enrollment relates to responsive feeding in older children and over time.

The food retail environment has been directly linked to disparities in dietary behaviors and may in part explain racial and ethnic disparities in pregnancy-related deaths. The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), administered by the United States Department of Agriculture, is associated with improved healthy food and beverage access due to its requirement for minimum stock of healthy foods and beverages in WIC-eligible stores. The selection and authorization criteria used to authorize WIC vendors varies widely from state to state with little known about the specific variations. This paper reviews and summarizes the differences across 16 of these criteria enacted by 89 WIC administrative agencies: the 50 states, the District of Columbia, five US Territories, and 33 Indian Tribal Organizations. Vendor selection and authorization criteria varied across WIC agencies without any consistent pattern. The wide variations in criteria and policies raise questions about the rational for inconsistency. Some of these variations, in combination, may result in reduced access to WIC-approved foods and beverages by WIC participants. For example, minimum square footage and/or number of cash register criteria may limit vendors to larger retail operations that are not typically located in high-risk, under-resourced communities where WIC vendors are most needed. Results highlight an opportunity to convene WIC stakeholders to review variations, their rationale, and implications thereof especially as this process could result in improved policies to ensure and improve healthy food and beverage access by WIC participants. More work remains to better understand the value of state WIC vendor authorization authority, particularly in states that have provided stronger monitoring requirements. This work might also examine if and how streamlining WIC vendor criteria (or at least certain components of them) across regional areas or across the country could provide an opportunity to advance interstate commerce and promote an equitable supply of food across the food system, while ensuring the protection for local, community-oriented WIC vendors.