Adoption Medicine

Here you'll find the best adoption medicine articles, checklists, and downloads from the Adoptive Families archives—medical resources useful before and after you adopt.

The Adoption Medicine Travel Guide Four articles by Deborah Borchers, M.D., walk parents through evaluating a referral, preparing for the adoption trip, and completing a post-adoption medical assessment. Download this free PDF today!
Insurance Coverage for Medical Screening Tests If your insurance company has denied payment for post-adoption lab work, ask your pediatrician to adapt this letter by Deborah Borchers, M.D. (Word document)
A Healthy Beginning: Important Information for Parents of Internationally Adopted Children The American Academy of Pediatrics offers a helpful brochure for parents who have just adopted a child. Includes questions to ask the doctor and a checklist to bring on that first medical visit. (PDF download)

PRE-ADOPTION

• Assessing a Referral
  The medical information you receive in your referral can vary greatly, but an adoption medicine specialist can help you make sense of it.
• Special-Needs Adoption
  Here's an overview of diagnoses that are frequently mentioned in referrals, or identified by an adoption physician after a review of a child's medical file.
• Medical Preparations for Adoption Travel
  Information for families about travel medical insurance, finding a doctor away from home, how to pack meds, and the antibiotic debate.
• Medical Experts Come Out Against HIV Testing Abroad Prior to Adoption
  Some adoption agencies offer the option of testing while the adoption process is underway, but false results often condemn children to orphanage life.
• Pre-adoption Medical Assessment
  A pre-adoption medical review will address your concerns about the health of a child and help you give your child the best care.
• Prenatal Drug Exposure: What Parents Need to Know
  Unfortunately, there is no way to predict with certainty the impact of prenatal substance abuse upon a child at the time of the child's adoption. Here are symptoms to look out for and resources for new adoptive parents.
• An Open Letter to Pediatricians Regarding Medical Issues Involved in International Adoption
  A great handout to give to your family doctor as you prepare for your adoption trip.

POST-ADOPTION

• Beyond Growth Charts
  An inadequate diet may affect more than height and weight. Here's what parents need to know about assessing a newly adopted child's nutritional status.
• The Transition Diet
  Expert guidelines on introducing new foods, regulating meal schedules and portions, and addressing feeding challenges in a newly adopted child.
• A Solid Start
  How soon after adopting can you transition your child from liquids to solid foods?
• The Right Formula
  DHA, ARA, cow's milk/soy, powder/liquid...? An adoption medicine expert guides you through all the different formula options.
• Feed Me!
  Formulas, nutrition, and feeding: everything you need to know about filling your child's tummy.
• Choosing Your Pediatrician
  Choosing a pediatrician is an important decision for any family, and one with a slightly different slant for an adopting family.
• Ten Questions to Ask Pediatricians
  Take AF's list to your child's next doctor's appointment.
• Misunderstanding Mongolian Spots
  it's a good idea to ask your pediatrician to make a note of your child's Mongolian spots.
• Why You Need Your Child's Medical History
  Here's what you should know and how to get it.
• When Should You Schedule Surgery?
  Here are several factors to consider when scheduling surgery for an internationally adopted child.

CHECK UPS

• Post-Arrival Evaluations
  How to identify medical problems common to internationally adopted children. Plus, information about testing in the birth country.
• Vision and Hearing Testing
  Most adoption medical specialists recommend having your child's vision and hearing screened as soon as you come home.
• Post-Adoption Check-Ups
  Our experts dispel misconceptions and myths, answer questions, and provide post-adoption check-up lists to give to your doctor.

RAISING HEALTHY KIDS

• Adoption Medicine: A New Specialty
  Here's why more and more parents are consulting experienced adoption doctors to evaluate their referral or to follow-up after adoption.
• Ask the Doctor: Prenatal Alcohol Exposure
  Looking for early warning signs can mean all the difference for your child.
• Ask the Doctor: Dental Care
  Teeth tell a story-about hygiene, nutrition, and overall health. Here are some tips for promoting good dental health.
• It's The Law: Why Your Health Insurance Company Must Cover Your Children
  Discrimination by health insurance carriers against adopted children was prohibited by legislation in 1993. See how the law affects you and your family.
• What You Need To Know To Breastfeed Your Baby
  Few adoptive mothers will tell you that nursing is easy, but almost all will say it's worth the effort.
• Feeding Your Baby, Body and Soul
  Meals are a chance to both nourish and nurture your child. What you put in the bottle is only the beginning.
• 12 Essential Feeding Facts Parents Should Know
  By Marybeth Lambe, M.D.
  What kind of nipples are best? Is tap water O.K.? Is the dishwasher safe? Find the answers to your feeding questions here.
• Ask the Doctor: Nutrition 101
  How to make sure that children are properly nourished and developing healthy eating habits, plus other guidelines for nutritional health.
• Questioning Medical Myths
  Here are a few misconceptions we've encountered in families adopting internationally and how to make sure your infant or toddler is getting the care he needs.

DISEASES

• Lives In The Balance
  For adoptees who don't know their birth families-and have little chance of locating them-finding a donor becomes a challenge.
• Ask the Doctor: Tuberculosis
  Everything you need to know about testing for TB.
• Ask the Doctor: Anemia
  What you should do for an anemic child.
• Ask the Doctor: Hepatitis B
  What adopting parents need to know about hepatitis B.

EARLY INTERVENTION

• Early Intervention: Spotting Problems in Your Child's Development
  If your baby or toddler isn't hitting developmental milestones, help is here-at little or no cost-thanks to Early Intervention services nationwide.
• Clearing Hurdles to Learning
  For the 20 percent of schoolchildren who find it hard to master specific learning skills, early intervention can make the difference. Here's what to do if you suspect a problem.
• The More-Than-Difficult Child
  A watchful parent can often tell the difference between a child who is having a bad day and one with a more serious problem. Early intervention and treatment is key to helping your child get on the road to wellness.
• Ask the Doctor: Early Intervention
  Early Intervention information and resources for new adoptive families.

SPEECH AND HEARING

• Special Report: Your Child's Speech and Language Development
  Language is the gateway to learning. Here's what you need to know to foster speech and language skills, and to get help when you suspect trouble.
• Learning to Listen
  A child who has trouble with speech and language may actually be overwhelmed by sound. Auditory training, though controversial, may help.
• A Labor to Listen
  If the sounds of the world are too much for your child, he may have an auditory processing problem. Learn how to figure it out and find help.
• From Their Mouths to Our Ears
  It's never too early to assess our children's speech and language development-and to seek support if needed.

RESOURCES FOR PARENTS

• Adoption Doctor Search on AF's Adoption Guide site or American Academy of Pediatrics' Adoption Directory
  Find a doctor who specializes in adoption medicine.
• Adoption Nutrition
  Read more about adoption nutrition, from pre-adoption prep through the first year home, including feeding tips and tricks and nutrition profiles by country.
• World Health Organization's Global Status Report on Alcohol
  Country-by-country statistics on alcohol use.
• Evaluating for FAS
  Guidelines for taking proper evaluation photos.
• Newborn Screening
  Find statistics and learn about newborn screening requirements, by state.
• Adoptive Breastfeeding
  If you're considering adoptive breastfeeding, begin your research on La Leche League International's site.
  PLUS: "Nursing Matthew," a mom reflects on breastfeeding her son