Children with older siblings are more likely to experience wheezing or asthma than children who are the oldest or only children in their families, according to a new study.

In the study, researchers at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health evaluated nearly 1,000 New York City 4-year-olds enrolled in Head Start, a preschool program for low-income children. They found that children with at least two older siblings were 50% more likely than other children to go the emergency room or stay at a hospital overnight because of breathing problems.

Researchers said a possible explanation is that children with older siblings can be exposed to infections at an earlier age than oldest or only children.

In the study, researchers also found that wheezing was more common among boys than girls, and children whose parents have asthma also had a higher prevalence of wheezing.

‘Patient Navigator’ Guides Cancer Patients at Queens Hospital

The Queens Hospital Center and the American Cancer Society have launched a “patient navigator” program to help cancer patients deal with their diagnoses and treatments.

The program, funded through a $10 million grant from the pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca, employs a full-time counselor for cancer patients, survivors, and their families. The navigator can accompany patients on physician visits and address concerns such as financial assistance.

“It’s important because it links the people who are affected with cancer to the resources that are available to them, whether it’s psycho-social services, support groups, gift programs, housing,” the patient navigator, Gwyn Giaquinto, said. “There are so many key concepts that come into play. Everybody’s story is different.”

Funding Awarded for Hospital Infection Prevention

The state’s Department of Health awarded $1.2 million to seven health organizations to develop and implement programs focused on preventing infections acquired in hospitals.

Hospital-acquired infections affect 5% to 10% of patients each year, the state’s health commissioner, Dr. Richard Daines, said in announcing the grants.

The city’s public hospital system, the Health and Hospitals Corp., received the largest grant, $200,000. HHC’s program will target infections associated with multi-drug-resistant organisms in intensive care units. Other grants will go to the Healthcare Association of New York State; the Greater New York Hospital Association; Beth Israel Medical Center; North Shore University Hospital; the University of Rochester School of Medicine & Dentistry, and the Westchester County Healthcare Corp.

Bracelets, Lunch Bags Identify Food Allergies

Fairway Market is carrying a line of wristbands and lunch bags for children that are designed to help teachers and caregivers remember their food allergies.

The red bracelets, lunch bags, and backpacks can be marked with a child’s name and his or her food allergies.

The company behind the products — STAT kids — was started in 2006 by a Philadelphia woman, Robin Davison, whose son suffers from food allergies. She launched the line after several “close calls,” when her son nearly ate food to which he is allergic.

Bracelets retail for $12.95 and nylon lunch bags cost $19.95. For students with severe allergies, a STAT kids backpack can be packed with an Epi-Pen or inhaler.

Cancer Doctor to Oversee Harlem Hospital-Columbia Affiliation

Columbia University Medical Center has named an oncologist, Dr. Alfred Ashford, senior associate dean of the Harlem Hospital Center.

In the new role, Dr. Ashford will oversee clinical operations, academic and research programs, and administrative management for Harlem Hospital’s affiliation with Columbia. A graduate of Rutgers University and Georgetown University School of Medicine, Dr. Ashford currently serves as director of medicine at Harlem Hospital and a professor of clinical medicine at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.

“Under Dr. Ashford’s supervision, we remain committed to our shared institutional mission of providing top quality health care to residents of Northern Manhattan,” the executive vice president of Columbia, Dr. Lee Goldman, said in a statement announcing the appointment.