Alison Lehane

BACKGROUND: Pediatric trauma remains the leading cause of childhood mortality and contributes to over 8 million nonfatal injuries annually in children and young adults, with associated costs exceeding $908 billion. Despite its public health burden, pediatric trauma research is constrained by geographic dispersion of injuries, variability in care, and low volumes of critical injuries at individual centers. METHODS: The Summit convened 49 national experts from pediatric trauma, neurosurgery, emergency medicine, counseling, rehabilitation, research methodology, public health, and research organizations. Premeeting focus groups assessed baseline perspectives. In-person sessions focused on three goals: (1) develop a shared conceptual framework for collaborative research, (2) identify scientific priorities addressable only through network research, and (3) outline a roadmap for sustainable funding. Sessions included expert presentations, breakout discussions, and consensus building. RESULTS: Summit participants emphasized the need for standardized data collection, flexible center participation, mentorship of junior investigators, and harmonization of care practices to reduce intercenter variability. Scientific priorities included traumatic brain injury, hemorrhagic shock, prehospital care, and child abuse. Standardizing functional outcomes and implementing predictive models were highlighted as essential. Funding strategies focused on philanthropic seed funding, industry partnerships, and long-term federal investment, with advocacy identified as a key factor for network sustainability. CONCLUSION: The third Childress Summit accelerated the development national pediatric trauma network research network grounded in the A+ Pediatric Trauma Research Network framework. A coordinated, inclusive, and strategically funded research network is essential to advancing pediatric trauma science and improving outcomes for injured children nationwide. ( J Trauma Acute Care Surg . 2026;100: 995–1000. Copyright © 2025 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.) LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Expert opinion, Level V.

Introduction: Traumatic injury is the leading cause of death among children. While factors associated with pediatric trauma and trauma recidivism are known, efforts to prevent injury continue. This study aimed to assess the association between community resources and pediatric trauma, including penetrating injuries and recidivism. Methods: A retrospective review was conducted at a Level 1 pediatric trauma center of patients aged 0-28 years with traumatic injuries from January 2008 to April 2023. Recidivists, defined as patients with multiple trauma visits, were compared to nonrecidivists. The top 6 zip codes with the highest trauma rates were analyzed for community resources using the Community Resources and Assets Forsyth County map. Pairwise Pearson correlation coefficients were calculated to assess relationships between community resources, recidivism, penetrating trauma, and child abuse injuries. Results: Among 3004 patients from the top 5 zip codes, 8.6% were recidivists (n = 258). Penetrating trauma comprised 31% of injuries (n = 938). A moderately strong positive correlation was found between community resources and recidivism (r = 0.5668), while very strong positive correlations were observed for community resources with penetrating trauma (r = 0.9118) and child abuse (r = 0.9448). Among children under 16, the correlation between resources and penetrating trauma was strong (r = 0.7466). Conclusions: Community resources are concentrated in areas of high pediatric trauma, yet their effectiveness in reducing injuries appears limited, likely due to poor access or awareness. These findings highlight the need to improve access and utilization of resources in high-need areas through targeted trauma prevention initiatives.

This article describes the use of life cycle analysis to better understand the environmental impact of a single‐use laryngoscope. This can help to better target waste reduction and find better solutions to improve environmental sustainability in healthcare.