Very small pediatric donor kidney transplantation in pediatric recipients

Kidneys from very small pediatric donors (age <5 years, weight <21 kg) may be a means to increase the donor pool for pediatric recipients. Transplantation of small pediatric kidneys is more commonly performed in adult recipients due to the increased risks of technical complications, thrombosis, and early graft failure. While these risks are abrogated in adult recipients by limiting the donor weight to ≥10 kg and using the EB technique, it is unknown whether pediatric recipients achieve comparable results. US national data were assessed for all first‐time, deceased‐donor, kidney‐only pediatric recipients, 1/1996‐10/2013, who received very small pediatric donor grafts or grafts from ideal adult donors. We identified 57 pediatric EB, 110 pediatric SK, and 2350 adult transplants. The primary outcome was 3‐year all‐cause graft survival. Kaplan‐Meier curves showed worse outcomes for pediatric grafts compared to adult ideal grafts (P=.042). On multivariate analysis, pediatric recipients of SK grafts had significantly higher HRs (aHR 2.01, 95% CI 1.34‐3.00) and pediatric recipients of EB grafts had somewhat higher non‐significant HRs (1.57; 95% CI 0.88‐2.79) for graft survival. These results suggest cautionary use of very small pediatric donors as a source to expand the donor pool for pediatric candidates.     

The link between pediatric primary care and pediatric emergency care

The continuum of emergency medical services for children (EMS-C) is an elaborate interwoven fabric of talent, time, and tithe. To optimize outcomes for children, the efforts of all who participate in their care must be coordinated in a seamless fashion. One of the crucial components of EMS-C is the link between primary care providers (PCP) and emergency medicine (EM) providers; the two are truly interdependent, and on them, their patients are completely dependent. This report examines the relationship between PCP and EM physicians, describes utilization practices in one urban setting, and offers some guidance for future modification of this important link between providers.     

The pediatric airway

Good airway management technique is an essential skill for physicians in most specialties. This article begins with a review of basic airway anatomy and the physiology of the uninstrumented airway. This subject is of particular importance given the increasing use of procedural sedation and the increased recognition of sleep-disordered breathing in infants and children. A discussion of the various artificial airways and their advantages and disadvantages follows. The difficult airway is an important contributor to both patient morbidity and mortality. It is important to have a planned management approach available for the anticipated and, more importantly, the unanticipated difficult airway. The recommendations of the American Society of Anesthesiologists Taskforce on the Management of the Difficult Airway have good application for this important problem. The fetus with the prenatal diagnosis of a lesion that predicts a difficult airway presents a particular challenge. The utilization of an ex-utero intrapartum treatment method is presented as an important approach for the delivery and airway management of these infants. This section closes with a discussion of the prehospital airway management of the pediatric patient.     

Social pediatric emergencies

A social pediatric emergency invokes the concept of a crisis situation, which often reflects an acute temporary state, the culmination of problems of long duration. The needs demonstrated in child abuse, neglect and deprivation, sexual abuse, the handling of the crisis of birth, pregnancy and abnormality, death and dying, adoption and learning disabilities are related to the family psychodynamic relationships and the doctor team approach. The social pediatrician can play his role as the physician, advocate, activist and educationalist in the many complex situations revealed within family, community and society.