Use of Family History Information in Pediatric Primary Care and Public Health: A Supplement to the Journal Pediatrics

In February 2006, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention held a workgroup meeting on the use of family medical history in pediatric primary care practice and public health. This meeting discussed extending the scope of CDC’s Family History Public Health Initiative, launched in 2002, to include children and their families. The purpose of the 2002 initiative was to evaluate the use of family history in assessing people’s risks for common diseases and developing more effective strategies for early detection and prevention.

Link to articles from Pediatrics supplement
This Pediatrics supplement, published in September 2007, summarizes the workgroup discussions.  It also includes articles on topics that emerged as leading issues from the meeting:

• Role of Family Medical History Information in Pediatric Primary Care and Public Health: Introduction
• Family History in Pediatric Primary Care
• Linking Family History in Obstetric and Pediatric Care: Assessing Risk for Genetic Disease and Birth Defects
• Utility of Family History Reports of Major Birth Defects as a Public Health Strategy
• Is Family History a Useful Tool for Detecting Children at Risk for Diabetes and Cardiovascular Diseases? A Public Health Perspective
• Summary of Workgroup Meeting on Use of Family History Information in Pediatric Primary Care and Public Health

Pregnancy-Planning Education Program