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Pediatric Terrorism and Disaster Preparedness: A ... - PHE Home

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Table 5.1.<br />

<strong>Pediatric</strong> vulnerabilities to chemical terrorism<br />

Realm Potential vulnerability Potential response<br />

Physiologic Increased respiratory exposure (higher<br />

minute ventilation, live “closer to the<br />

ground)<br />

Early warning, sheltering* (gas<br />

masks not advised because of<br />

risk of poor fit, suffocation)<br />

Developmental<br />

Psychological<br />

EMS<br />

Increased dermal exposure (thinner, more<br />

permeable skin; larger body surface<br />

area/mass ratio)<br />

Increased risk of dehydration, shock with<br />

illness-induced vomiting, diarrhea<br />

(decreased fluid reserves, larger body<br />

surface area/mass ratio)<br />

Increased risk of hypothermia during<br />

decontamination (larger body surface<br />

area/mass ratio)<br />

More fulminant disease; (possible)<br />

physiologic detoxification immaturity; more<br />

permeable blood-brain barrier<br />

Less ability to escape attack site, take<br />

appropriate evasive actions (developmental<br />

immaturity, normal dependence on adult<br />

caregivers who might be injured or dead)<br />

Less coping skill of children who suffer<br />

injury or witness parental, sibling death<br />

(psychological immaturity)<br />

Greater anxiety over reported incidents,<br />

hoaxes, media coverage, etc<br />

Less capacity to cope with influx of critical<br />

pediatric patients<br />

Loss of routine hospital transfer protocols<br />

Limited ability to exp<strong>and</strong> pediatric hospital<br />

bed capacity through NDMS<br />

* Plausible, but unproved or unstudied, <strong>and</strong>/or not intuitively obvious<br />

† For AAP <strong>and</strong> AACAP resources for parents <strong>and</strong> pediatricians, see<br />

http://www.aap.org/advocacy/releases/disastercomm.htm <strong>and</strong><br />

http://www.aacap.org/publications/factsfam/disaster.htm.<br />

Protective clothing, early<br />

decontamination 1<br />

Recognition, aggressive fluid<br />

therapy<br />

Warm water decontamination<br />

<strong>Pediatric</strong>-specific research for<br />

early diagnosis <strong>and</strong> treatment<br />

of chemical weapons victims 1<br />

?<br />

Child psychiatry involvement,<br />

research for preventing<br />

pediatric post-traumatic stress<br />

disorder 1<br />

<strong>Pediatric</strong> counseling of parents<br />

<strong>and</strong> children †<br />

Community <strong>and</strong> regional<br />

planning with significant<br />

pediatric input<br />

Source: Adapted from Henretig FM, Cieslak TJ, Eitzen EM Jr. Biological <strong>and</strong> chemical terrorism.<br />

J Pediatr 141:311–326, © 2002, with permission from Elsevier.<br />

132

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