ABSTRACT
Pediatric-specific trauma centers were first established in the early 1970s with published articles documenting the increasing effort to organize and improve overall care of injured children. The National Pediatric Trauma Registry (NPTR) was developed in 1985 with the assistance of a grant from the US Department of Education. Pediatric trauma centers must meet the same resource requirements as adult trauma centers, in addition to pediatric resource requirements. As of 2016, the American College of Surgeons (ACS) divides pediatric trauma centers into Level I and Level II centers. Pediatric trauma centers, verified by the ACS, have multiplied fivefold over the last 10 years and do not include those centers in states with their own systems of verification. As with adults, plain radiographs and CT scanning are the major diagnostic modalities for injured children. Immediate access during the initial management phase is a high priority.
