Children are frightening. Frightening? In nearly all contexts this statement would be indefensible. In medicine, however, children are often frightening. For one thing, clinical evaluation in young children can be more difficult than with adults. In addition, in the acutely ill or injured child, reserve can be limited and appropriate assessment, including imaging evaluation, and subsequent care are critically important in improving outcome. Many care providers are not pediatric specialists by practice, and evaluation and treatment of children is less familiar than with adults
