NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.

This study was supported by Contract No. 282-99-0045 between the National Academy of Sciences and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ); Contract No. B03-06 between the National Academy of Sciences and the Josiah Macy, Jr. Foundation; and Contract No. HHSH25056047 between the National Academy of Sciences and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the organizations or agencies that provided support for this project.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Emergency care for children : growing pains / Committee on the Future of Emergency Care in the United States Health System, Board on Health Care Services.

p. ; cm. — (Future of emergency care series)

1. Pediatric emergencies. 2. Pediatric intensive care. 3. Children—Wounds and injuries— Treatment. 4. Emergency medical services. I. Institute of Medicine (U.S.). Committee on the Future of Emergency Care in the United States Health System. II. Series.

[DNLM: 1. Emergency Medical Services—organization & administration—United States. 2. Child—United States. 3. Child Health Services—organization & administration—United States. 4. Infant—United States. WS 205 E527 2007]

RJ370.E4487 2007

618.92′0025—dc22

2007002800

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The serpent has been a symbol of long life, healing, and knowledge among almost all cultures and religions since the beginning of recorded history. The serpent adopted as a logotype by the Institute of Medicine is a relief carving from ancient Greece, now held by the Staatliche Museen in Berlin.