Pediatrics
From Free net encyclopedia
Paediatrics (also spelled pediatrics) is the branch of medicine that deals with the medical care of infants, children, and adolescents (from newborn to age 18 or 19). The word paediatrics is derived from two Greek words paidi (παιδί) which means "boy" and iatros (ιατρός) which means "doctor". Most paediatricians are members of a national body, such as the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Canadian Paediatric Society, the British Association of Paediatric Surgeons, the Royal College Of Paediatrics and Child Health, Norsk barnelegeforening (The Norwegian society of pediatricians) or the Indian Academy of Pediatrics.
Paediatrics differs from adult medicine in many respects. The obvious body size differences are paralleled by maturational changes. The smaller body of an infant or neonate is substantially different physiologically from that of an adult. Congenital defects, genetic variance, immunology, oncology, and a host of other issues are unique to the realm of pediatrics. Increasingly effective health care also means that diseases such as sickle cell anemia and cystic fibrosis are more often treated by paediatricians, though many or most patients grow into adulthood. Issues revolving around infectious diseases and immunizations are also dealt with primarily by paediatricians.
Paediatrics is also a springboard for any specialty of general medicine, each with its own unique aspects. Paediatric cardiologists deal with heart conditions in children, particularly congenital heart defects, paediatric oncologists often treat leukemias and lymphomas. Every subspecialty of the adult doctor exists in the pediatric field (with the exception of geriatrics), but some are unique to pediatrics, such as adolescent medicine, sports medicine, and neonatology.
Adulthood is the period of greatest growth, development and maturation of the various organ systems in the body. Years of training and experience (above and beyond basic medical training) goes into recognizing the difference between normal variants and what is actually pathological.
Another major difference between paediatrics and adult medicine is that children are minors and, in most jurisdictions, cannot make decisions for themselves. The issue of guardianship, legal responsibility and informed consent must always be considered in every paediatric procedure. In a sense, paediatricians often have to treat the parents and sometimes, the family, rather than just the child. Adolescents are in their own legal class, having rights to their own health care decisions in certain circumstances only, though this is in legal flux and varies by region.
In the U.S., paediatricians are considered to be primary care doctors, along with family practice, internal medicine, and obstetrics. Much of the rest of the world considers them specialists, and parents are only referred to paediatricians for special care not handled by the generalists.
Abraham Jacobi is considered the father of paediatrics.
Education
The educational requirements for a paediatrician within the United States generally starts with graduating from a four year college. Then one goes to medical school for four more years. After completion of medical school, one does a residency in pediatrics for an additional three years. The paediatrician may then elect to pass a certification examination to be Board Certified in paediatrics. To specialize within paediatrics, one must complete an additional three year fellowship within their desired subspecialty. The paediatrician may then elect to pass another examination to be Board Certified in that paediatric subspeciality. Some certified paediatric subspecialities in the United States are pulmonology, cardiology, gastroenterology, endocrinology, nephrology, neonatology, critical care, and emergency medicine.
External links
- GeneralPediatrics.com - The General Pediatrician's View of the Internet
- PediatricEducation.org - A Pediatric Digital Library and Learning Collaboratory intended to serve as a source of continuing pediatric education
- Virtual Pediatric Hospital - A digital library of pediatric information
- American Academy of Pediatrics
- Pediatrics
- Royal College of Paediatrics website - Homepage for the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health
- Case Studies in Environmental Medicine: Pediatric Environmental Health
- MedStudy Corporation - produces quality study/review materials to prepare physicians for Pediatrics Board certification and recertification exams.
| Health science – Medicine - edit |
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| Anesthesiology | Dermatology | Emergency Medicine | General practice | Internal medicine | Neurology | Obstetrics & Gynaecology | Occupational Medicine | Pathology | Pediatrics | Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation | Podiatry | Psychiatry | Public Health | Radiology | Surgery |
| Branches of Internal medicine |
| Cardiology | Endocrinology | Gastroenterology | Hematology | Infectious diseases | Intensive care medicine | Nephrology | Oncology | Pulmonology | Rheumatology |
| Branches of Surgery |
| General surgery | Cardiothoracic surgery | Neurosurgery | Ophthalmology | Organ Transplantation | Orthopedic surgery | Otolaryngology (ENT) | Pediatric surgery | Plastic surgery | Podiatric surgery | Urology | Vascular surgery |
de:Pädiatrie es:Pediatría eo:Pediatrio fr:Pédiatrie hr:Pedijatrija it:Pediatria nl:Pediatrie ja:小児科学 no:Pediatri pl:Pediatria pt:Pediatria ru:Педиатрия sh:Pedijatrija simple:Pediatrics sr:Педијатрија sv:Pediatrik