SPA Statement on Racism and Our Commitment to Equity
The Board of Directors of the Society for Pediatric Anesthesia (SPA) wishes to express shock, outrage, and sadness at the recent depraved killings of African-Americans, and to acknowledge the senseless acts of violence happening across the nation. Consistent with our commitment to inclusion, mutual respect, and peaceful dialogue, we express our solidarity with the families […]
COVID-19 Resources
Dear SPA members, patients, and families, As the COVID-19 crisis escalates in the US and around the world, the SPA urges members to follow common sense precautions that are highlighted on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website. The CDC website offers advice to communities and individuals to prevent illness as well as […]
President’s Message on Children and Immigration
SPA Members: As you are no doubt aware there is an ongoing, very vigorous and often acrimonious debate around the issue of immigration and most importantly the separation of children from their parents. The Society, as a professional organization devoted to the health and welfare of children in the perioperative setting, takes no position on […]
Open Letter on Gun Violence
Dear Colleagues, Over the past several days I have received multiple e-mails expressing shock and outrage regarding what has now become known as the Valentine’s Day massacre. The most recent in a seemingly endless string of mass shootings occurred last week in a Parkland, Florida High School leaving 17 students and teachers dead and many […]
Joint IARS SPA Press Release on Study of Anesthesia Safety
San Francisco – April 18, 2018 – A Mayo Clinic study of children who received one or more exposures to anesthesia before the age of 3 has provided valuable information about the potential neurological and behavioral impact of general anesthesia on very young children, according to the International Anesthesia Research Society and the Society for […]
Neurodevelopmental outcome at 2 years of age after general anaesthesia and awake-regional anaesthesia in infancy (GAS): an international multicentre, randomised controlled trial
Summary Background Preclinical data suggest that general anaesthetics affect brain development. There is mixed evidence from cohort studies that young children exposed to anaesthesia can have an increased risk of poor neurodevelopmental outcome. We aimed to establish whether general anaesthesia in infancy has any effect on neurodevelopmental outcome. Here we report the secondary outcome of […]
Anesthesia and Brain Development in Your Child
On Dec. 14, 2016 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a safety announcement regarding the potential effect of anesthetics on children younger than 3 years of age. Recent studies suggest that a single, relatively short exposure to general anesthetic and sedation drugs in infants or toddlers is unlikely to have negative effects on […]
SPA Response to the FDA Med Watch December 16, 2016
On Wednesday, December 14, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released a Drug Safety Communication warning that; “repeated or lengthy use of general anesthetic or sedation drugs during surgeries or procedures in children younger than three years of age or in pregnant women during the final trimester may affect development of children’s brains”. […]
Enrollment is Open for ACS Children’s Surgery Verification Quality Improvement Program
The new program’s standards to improve surgical care for children are the nation’s first and only multispecialty standards of their kind CHICAGO (January 31, 2017): Hospitals interested in enrolling in the American College of Surgeons (ACS) Children’s Surgery Verification (CSV) Quality Improvement Program may now file a Pre-Application online for participation in the program. ACS, […]