Paediatrics

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The branch of medicine that deals with the health and medical care of infants, children, and adolescents
2. A field focused on diagnosing, treating, and preventing illnesses in younger populations, often up to the age of 18
3. A specialty that encompasses all aspects of healthcare for young individuals, including growth monitoring and developmental assessments

Etymology: The word is built from two Greek parts. The first, "paidos" (genitive of "pais"), meant "child", and the second, "iatrikos", comes from "iatros", the Greek word for "healer" or "physician". Put together they describe the care of children, and the Greek root that gives us "pais" also lies behind words like "pedagogue", a term that originally meant a slave who escorted boys to school. The spelling "paediatrics" keeps the Greek "ae" diphthong, which is why British usage has long preferred it. American English simplified the vowel to "pediatrics", and this is the form the source lists as the alternative. Both spellings name the same branch of medicine, so the difference is purely one of convention rather than meaning.

Synonyms: pediatrics, child medicine