Pediatric endocrinology

We understand the unique nature of children’s medicine, and offer compassionate care to children in a warm and supporting environment, convenient to the Kansas City community.

Our pediatric endocrinology care is centralized at Overland Park Regional Medical Center, and that facility's care team is led by board-certified and fellowship-trained pediatric endocrinologists who are experienced in providing care for growth issues to thyroid gland disorders.

Our pediatric endocrinology team practices in the same location as our other children’s specialists, allowing our physicians to collaborate easily and provides families with a single site for their children's healthcare.

Our approach to pediatric care is multispecialty and team-oriented, offering a range of supplementary care for children in need, including:

• Care that helps to bridge the cap between pediatric and adult care, so teenagers don't suffer from a lack of care when they leave their pediatricians.
• Infant care in our neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), for newborns with endocrine disorders.
• Emergency services, courtesy of Overland Park Regional Medical Center's pediatric emergency room (ER), for when your child's endocrine condition requires emergency care. This is Johnson County’s only ER to include a pediatric intensive care unit (PICU).

Above all, we are committed to partnering with children's pediatricians to ensure open communication, collaboration and peace of mind for patients and their families.

When children and families come to us for pediatric endocrine care in either the clinic or hospital setting, they see the same experienced and highly trained endocrinologist every time. This continuity ensures a level of comfort in children and parents that promotes the best outcomes.

In addition to individualized treatment programs and comprehensive lab services, some of the most common treatments we use for pediatric endocrine conditions include:

• Adrenal venous sampling — A procedure in which blood samples are taken from both adrenal glands to compare the amount of hormone made by each one.
• Continuous glucose monitoring systems — A compact medical system that continuously monitors blood sugar levels in real time.
• Endocrine procedures — Procedures that could include gland removal surgeries to treat hormone imbalances.
• Fine-needle aspiration of thyroid nodules — A procedure that involves removing a small sample of tissue from the thyroid gland for analysis or treatment.
• Insulin pumps and insulin therapy — Treatments that provide continuous delivery of short-acting insulin to improve blood sugar levels.
• Nutrition and weight management services — Support, prevention and management for weight loss, balance and portion and calorie control.
• Pediatric diabetes program — Support and management for children with types 1 and 2 diabetes.
• Radioactive iodine treatment — A treatment for thyroid conditions, such as hyperthyroidism and thyroid cancer, involving nuclear medicine.

We use the latest technology, providing advanced tools to help young patients with type 1 and 2 diabetes successfully manage their conditions. However, we understand that medical care is only part of diabetes treatment. Our goal is to provide patients with an understanding of how to best manage their diabetes while staying active.

We firmly believe that whenever possible, children need to be active participants in their own care. This is especially true for young patients with diabetes. Our mission is to include children in discussions and decisions, which helps increase confidence, independence and a willingness to comply with treatment.

Much of our job is to give young patients the confidence and training needed to become experts in managing their diabetes. We strive to help children with diabetes live life and participate in activities like their peers who do not have diabetes.