Common colds (including RS virus) have been increasing. Wheezing symptoms, bronchitis, and asthma exacerbations are also on the rise.

COVID-19 is gradually increasing among elementarly school children who were mainly transmitted from adults.

“Summer colds” (including hand-foot-and-mouth disease and herpangina) are still observed but are decreasing. In both cases, fever is usually brief—either momentary or lasting up to one day.

In addition to typical streptococcal infections, cases of streptococcal infection presenting only with loose stools or diarrhea have been observed in elementary school children.

At our clinic, influenza cases are still few, but according to reports from Tokyo, the city entered the flu season earlier this year — about one month ahead of last year — as the average number of cases reported from sentinel medical institutions reached nearly two per week as of October 2.

Influenza vaccinations will be available from October through December. Please make a reservation using the dedicated web reservation slots for influenza vaccination.

Vaccinations will be administered during regular clinic hours. Therefore, there may be a short wait. Vaccination slots will be opened periodically.

The cost of the influenza vaccine is 3,500 yen per dose, the same as last year. Residents of Ota Ward are eligible for a subsidy. For children aged 6 months to 15 years who live in the ward, from October 1, a subsidy of 2,000 yen per dose will be provided (children 6 months–12 years: 2 doses; 13–15 years: 1 dose). After visiting the clinic, please complete the subsidy voucher (included in the questionnaire), which will reduce your out-of-pocket payment at the counter.

Additionally, the nasal live vaccine (for children aged 2–17 years, 1 dose) is also eligible for subsidy this year. It will be administered at 7,500 yen, with an expected subsidy equivalent to two injection doses (4,000 yen) — though this is still to be confirmed.

To confirm residency in Ota Ward, please bring not only the Maternal and Child Health Handbook but also your My Number Card (and medical insurance card).

For patients who regularly visit our clinic and have difficulty reserving online, please consult with us during your regular visit.

We see many patients with constipation, including children.
During consultations, we explain not only the general causes and treatments of constipation, but also the specific factors and conditions relevant to each individual. We provide guidance on how to manage care at home, using medication and daily logs when appropriate.

Many parents and patients take proactive steps beyond what we expect—such as medication use, encouraging toilet habits, and making dietary adjustments.

However, since we sometimes discuss previously explained topics or slightly technical matters, we've created a Q&A-style reference to serve as a memorandum for those moments when you think, “What did the doctor say again?”

Additionally, recognizing that the quality of care may be somewhat reduced in online consultations, we have decided to expand our previously limited online constipation clinic (originally offered only to those who had moved away) and make it widely available. To support these online consultations, we have published this Q&A on our website as a supplemental resource.

We plan to continue adding more “Q” entries, as well as supplementary text and illustrations. For now, it is available as a document-style PDF, but once enough content has been collected, we will redesign it into a more user-friendly web format.

Until then, we understand the document may seem text-heavy and harder to read, but we hope you will refer to the sections that are relevant to you.

With the rise in temperature and humidity, this is the season when dust mites thrive. Children who have tested positive for dust mite allergies through skin prick tests at the clinic may experience symptoms like a runny nose or itchy eyes in the morning – these could be due to reactions to mites.

Additionally, with increased sweating during this season, skin irritation can become more common. If your child is already visiting our clinic for skin care, you may need to adjust the frequency of maintenance treatments with topical steroids.

For children undergoing asthma management, especially those who have not yet started sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT), there is a higher chance of wheezing after catching a cold or after physical activities. For younger children, if coughing persists, please consider visiting us for a checkup. For children aged 4 and older who are tracking their peak flow (PEF) at home, please be extra careful if you notice a continuous drop in PEF values – in such cases, it may be necessary to start using a bronchodilator (such as Meptin Air®).

If you have any concerns, don’t hesitate to contact us.

Although the season for cedar pollen typically ends in March and cypress pollen reactions are uncommon in children, we still see some children experiencing symptoms like eye rubbing and sneezing in the mornings even after mid-May, when cypress pollen has mostly subsided.

Particularly, children who live near riversides may have more opportunities to come into contact with grass pollens (such as orchard grass, sweet vernal grass, or perennial ryegrass), leading to sensitization and allergic reactions.

However, grasses like these do not spread their pollen over long distances, and symptoms are more likely to occur when in the vicinity of the plant’s habitat, so the area where you live plays a significant role.

Specifically, sweet vernal grass (and similar grasses) contain allergens that are similar in structure to those in certain fruitsand vegetables (melon, watermelon, citrus fruits, banana, pineapple, persimmon, zucchini, tomato, hazelnuts, peanuts etc.), which can trigger PFAS (pollen-food allergy syndrome) or OAS (oral allergy syndrome) when eating those fruits and vegetables. As a result, dietary restrictions may be necessary, and this is where it can affect daily life.

Currently, clinical trials for sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) targeting sweet vernal grass and related grasses are underway, so treatment options may become available in the future, but there is no cure at present.

We will proceed with diagnosis through skin testing and consider dietary restrictions while monitoring the degree of reaction using oral food challenges.

We've started consultation from foreign pediatric visitors/ travellers. Adult menbers of their families also feel free to visit with them.