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Emergency Medicine
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Stroke in Children on the Rise/Children’s Hospital Develops New Protocol
Observing an increase in the incidence of pediatric stroke over the last several years, Raymond Pitetti, MD, – working in collaboration with Children’s colleagues including neurologist and stroke expert Amy Goldstein, MD, – developed a new protocol for the prompt diagnosis and treatment of children presenting in the emergency department with stroke.
Dr. Pitetti estimated that 5 to 10 years ago, several pediatric stroke victims would present in Children’s Emergency Department annually. In the last several years, however, he said there were as many as two pediatric stroke victims per month. Drs. Pitetti and Goldstein recognized that is was vital for pediatricians, family physicians and parents in general to be aware of this trend and the symptoms – because stroke is still relatively uncommon in children and therefore usually not considered as a diagnosis despite children presenting with classic symptoms. A quick diagnosis is crucial because, as in adult stroke, there is a narrow window to begin any effective treatment.
