Evaluating the Women's Empowerment and Leadership Initiative: Supporting mentorship, career satisfaction, and well-being among pediatric anesthesiologists.

The Society for Pediatric Anesthesia launched the Women's Empowerment and Leadership Initiative (WELI) in 2018 to empower highly productive women pediatric anesthesiologists to achieve equity, promotion, and leadership. WELI is focused on six career development domains: promotion and leadership, networking, conceptualization and completion of projects, mentoring, career satisfaction, and sense of well-being. We sought feedback about whether WELI supported members' career development by surveys emailed in November 2020 (baseline), May 2021 (6 months), and January 2022 (14 months). Program feedback was quantitatively evaluated by the Likert scale questions and qualitatively evaluated by extracting themes from free-text question responses. The response rates were 60.5% (92 of 152) for the baseline, 51% (82 of 161) for the 6-month, and 52% (96 of 185) for the 14-month surveys. Five main themes were identified from the free-text responses in the 6- and 14-month surveys. Members reported that WELI helped them create meaningful connections through networking, obtain new career opportunities, find tools and projects that supported their career advancement and promotion, build the confidence to try new things beyond their comfort zone, and achieve better work-life integration. Frustration with the inability to connect in-person during the coronavirus-19 pandemic was highlighted. Advisors further stated that WELI helped them improve their mentorship skills and gave them insight into early career faculty issues. Relative to the baseline survey, protégés reported greater contributions from WELI at 6 months in helping them clarify their priorities, increase their sense of achievement, and get promoted. These benefits persisted through 14 months. Advisors reported a steady increase in forming new meaningful relationships and finding new collaborators through WELI over time. All the members reported that their self-rated mentoring abilities improved at 6 months with sustained improvement at 14 months. Thus, programs such as WELI can assist women anesthesiologists and foster gender equity in career development, promotion, and leadership.

Anesthesia and Developing Brains: Unanswered Questions and Proposed Paths Forward.

Anesthetic agents disrupt neurodevelopment in animal models, but evidence in humans is mixed. The morphologic and behavioral changes observed across many species predicted that deficits should be seen in humans, but identifying a phenotype of injury in children has been challenging. It is increasingly clear that in children, a brief or single early anesthetic exposure is not associated with deficits in a range of neurodevelopmental outcomes including broad measures of intelligence. Deficits in other domains including behavior, however, are more consistently reported in humans and also reflect findings from nonhuman primates. The possibility that behavioral deficits are a phenotype, as well as the entire concept of anesthetic neurotoxicity in children, remains a source of intense debate. The purpose of this report is to describe consensus and disagreement among experts, summarize preclinical and clinical evidence, suggest pathways for future clinical research, and compare studies of anesthetic agents to other suspected neurotoxins.

Association Between Exposure of Children to General Anesthesia and Autism Spectrum Disorder.

This study tested the hypothesis that exposure of children prior to their third birthday to procedures requiring general anesthesia is associated with an increased incidence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in later life. This study employed a nested, 1:2 matched-case control study design using ASD cases identified in a population-based birth cohort of children born in Olmsted County, MN from 1976 to 2000. Matching variables included sex, date of birth, and mother's age in conditional logistic regression including 499 ASD cases and 998 controls. After adjusting for birth weight and health status, there was no significant association between exposure and ASD (OR 1.27 [95% CI 0.92-1.76]), indicating that general anesthesia is not associated with an increased risk of ASD.

Moderators of the association between attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and exposure to anaesthesia and surgery in children.

BACKGROUND: Children's exposure to anaesthesia has been associated with risk of developing attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The goal of this study was to determine if selected patient characteristics moderate the association between exposure to anaesthesia and ADHD. METHODS: In a cohort of children born in between 2006 and 2012, exposure to anaesthesia before the age of 5 yr was categorised into unexposed, singly, or multiply exposed. Weighted proportional hazard regression was performed to evaluate the hazard ratios (HRs) of ADHD diagnosis related to anaesthesia exposure. Interaction analyses were performed to evaluate potential moderators. RESULTS: Among 185 002 children in the cohort, 9179 were diagnosed with ADHD. Compared with unexposed children, a single exposure to anaesthesia was associated with a HR of 1.39, (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.32-1.47) for ADHD. Multiple exposures were associated with a HR of 1.75 (95% CI, 1.62-1.87). In the analyses evaluating moderators of the association between exposure and ADHD, only the interaction for race was statistically significant (P=0.006); exposure increased the incidence of ADHD to a greater extent in non-White compared with White children. Among children with a single exposure, the age at exposure did not affect the relationship between exposure and incidence of ADHD (P=0.78). CONCLUSIONS: Exposure of young children to anaesthesia and surgery is associated with an increased incidence of ADHD, with more exposures associated with greater risk. Compared with White children, non-White children are at greater risk for reasons that are unknown but need to be further explored.

Empowering Women as Leaders in Pediatric Anesthesiology: Methodology, Lessons, and Early Outcomes of a National Initiative.

Research has shown that women have leadership ability equal to or better than that of their male counterparts, yet proportionally fewer women than men achieve leadership positions and promotion in medicine. The Women's Empowerment and Leadership Initiative (WELI) was founded within the Society for Pediatric Anesthesia (SPA) in 2018 as a multidimensional program to help address the significant career development, leadership, and promotion gender gap between men and women in anesthesiology. Herein, we describe WELI's development and implementation with an early assessment of effectiveness at 2 years. Members received an anonymous, voluntary survey by e-mail to assess whether they believed WELI was beneficial in several broad domains: career development, networking, project implementation and completion, goal setting, mentorship, well-being, and promotion and leadership. The response rate was 60.5% (92 of 152). The majority ranked several aspects of WELI to be very or extremely valuable, including the protégé-advisor dyads, workshops, nomination to join WELI, and virtual facilitated networking. For most members, WELI helped to improve optimism about their professional future. Most also reported that WELI somewhat or absolutely contributed to project improvement or completion, finding new collaborators, and obtaining invitations to be visiting speakers. Among those who applied for promotion or leadership positions, 51% found WELI to be somewhat or absolutely valuable to their application process, and 42% found the same in applying for leadership positions. Qualitative analysis of free-text survey responses identified 5 main themes: (1) feelings of empowerment and confidence, (2) acquisition of new skills in mentoring, coaching, career development, and project implementation, (3) clarification and focus on goal setting, (4) creating meaningful connections through networking, and (5) challenges from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and the inability to sustain the advisor-protégé connection. We conclude that after 2 years, the WELI program has successfully supported career development for the majority of protégés and advisors. Continued assessment of whether WELI can meaningfully contribute to attainment of promotion and leadership positions will require study across a longer period. WELI could serve as a programmatic example to support women's career development in other subspecialties.

Effect of upper respiratory infection on anaesthesia induced atelectasis in paediatric patients.

Upper respiratory tract infection (URI) symptoms are known to increase perioperative respiratory adverse events (PRAEs) in children undergoing general anaesthesia. General anaesthesia per se also induces atelectasis, which may worsen with URIs and yield detrimental outcomes. However, the influence of URI symptoms on anaesthesia-induced atelectasis in children has not been investigated. This study aimed to demonstrate whether current URI symptoms induce aggravation of perioperative atelectasis in children. Overall, 270 children aged 6 months to 6 years undergoing surgery were prospectively recruited. URI severity was scored using a questionnaire and the degree of atelectasis was defined by sonographic findings showing juxtapleural consolidation and B-lines. The correlation between severity of URI and degree of atelectasis was analysed by multiple linear regression. Overall, 256 children were finally analysed. Most children had only one or two mild symptoms of URI, which were not associated with the atelectasis score across the entire cohort. However, PRAE occurrences showed significant correspondence with the URI severity (odds ratio 1.36, 95% confidence interval 1.10-1.67, p = 0.004). In conclusion, mild URI symptoms did not exacerbate anaesthesia-induced atelectasis, though the presence and severity of URI were correlated with PRAEs in children.Trial registration: Clinicaltrials.gov (NCT03355547).

Hypotension and adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes among children with multiple exposures to general anesthesia: Subanalysis of the Mayo Anesthesia Safety in Kids (MASK) Study.

BACKGROUND: The potential adverse effects of exposures to general anesthesia on the developing human brain remain controversial. It has been hypothesized that hypotension accompanying anesthesia could be contributory. We hypothesized that among children exposed to multiple anesthetics prior to age 3, children developing adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes would be more likely to have intraoperative hypotension. METHODS: Two previously published study cohorts were utilized for analysis: the retrospective and prospective Mayo Anesthesia Safety in Kids cohorts. The two lowest consecutive systolic blood pressure measurements were abstracted and standardized by calculating a z-score for noninvasive blood pressure reference ranges for children. The lowest systolic blood pressure z-score (continuous variable) and intraoperative hypotension (lowest systolic blood pressure z-score <-1.0) were used to assess the association of intraoperative hypotension with the incidence of learning disabilities or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder(retrospective cohort) and factor scores/cluster membership (prospective cohort). RESULTS: One hunderd and sixteen and 206 children with multiple exposures to general anesthesia were analyzed in the retrospective and prospective cohorts with mean lowest systolic blood pressure z-scores -0.26 (SD 1.02) and -0.62 (SD 1.10), respectively. There was no overall association of the lowest z-score or hypotension with learning disabilities or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in the retrospective cohort. In the prospective cohort, there was no overall association of the lowest systolic blood pressure or hypotension with factor scores or cluster membership. CONCLUSIONS: We did not find evidence to support the hypothesis that, among children exposed to multiple anesthetics prior to age 3, children developing adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes would be more likely to have intraoperative hypotension compared with those who did not.

Association Between Behavioral and Learning Outcomes and Single Exposures to Procedures Requiring General Anesthesia Before Age 3: Secondary Analysis of Data From Olmsted County, MN.

BACKGROUND: Two prior population-based (children born in Olmsted County, MN), retrospective cohort studies both found that multiple exposures to anesthesia before age 3 were associated with a significant increase in the frequency of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and learning disabilities (LD) later in life. The primary purpose of this secondary analysis of these data was to test the hypothesis that a single exposure to anesthesia before age 3 was associated with an increased risk of ADHD. We also examined the association of single exposures with LD and the need for individualized educational plans as secondary outcomes. METHODS: This analysis includes 5339 children who were unexposed to general anesthesia before age 3 (4876 born from 1976 to 1982 and 463 born from 1996 to 2000), and 1054 children who had a single exposure to anesthesia before age 3 (481 born from 1976 to 1982 and 573 born from 1996 to 2000). The primary outcome of interest was ADHD. Secondary outcomes included LD (reading, mathematics, and written language) and the need for individualized educational programs (speech/language and emotion/behavior). To compare the incidence of each outcome between those who were unexposed and singly exposed to anesthesia before the age of 3 years, an inverse probability of treatment weighted proportional hazards model was used. RESULTS: For children not exposed to anesthesia, the estimated cumulative frequency (95% confidence interval [CI]) of ADHD at age 18 was 7.3% (95% CI, 6.5-8.1) and 13.0% (95% CI, 10.1-16.8) for the 1976-1982 and 1996-2000 cohorts, respectively. For children exposed to a single anesthetic before age 3, the cumulative frequency of ADHD was 8.1% (95% CI, 5.3-12.4) and 17.6% (95% CI, 14.0-21.9) for the 1976-1982 and 1996-2000 cohorts, respectively. In weighted analyses, single exposures were not significantly associated with an increased frequency of ADHD (hazard ratio [HR], 1.21; 95% CI, 0.91-1.60; P = .184). Single exposures were also not associated with an increased frequency of any LD (HR, 0.98; 95% CI, 0.78-1.23), or the need for individualized education plans. CONCLUSIONS: This analysis did not find evidence that single exposures to procedures requiring general anesthesia, before age 3, are associated with an increased risk of developing ADHD, LD, or the need for individualized educational plans in later life.

Utility of medical record diagnostic codes to ascertain attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and learning disabilities in populations of children.

BACKGROUND: To develop and evaluate machine learning algorithms to ascertain attention-deficit/hyperactivity (ADHD) and learning disability (LD) using diagnostic codes in the medical record. METHOD: Diagnoses of ADHD and LD were confirmed in cohorts of children in Olmsted County of Minnesota based on validated research criteria. Models to predict ADHD and LD were developed using ICD-9 codes in a derivation cohort of 1057 children before evaluated in a validation cohort of 536 children. RESULTS: The ENET-MIN model using selected ICD-9 codes at prior probability of 0.25 has a sensitivity of 0.76, PPV of 0.85, specificity of 0.98, and NPV of 0.97 in the validation cohort. However, it does not offer significant advantage over a model using a single ICD-9 code of 314.X, which shows sensitivity of 0.81, PPV of 0.83, specificity of 0.98, and NPV of 0.97. None of the models developed for LD performed well in the validation cohort. CONCLUSIONS: It is feasible to utilize diagnostic codes to ascertain cases of ADHD in a population of children. Machine learning approaches do not have advantage compared with simply using a single family of diagnostic codes for ADHD. The use of medical record diagnostic codes is not feasible to ascertain LD.

Patterns of neuropsychological changes after general anaesthesia in young children: secondary analysis of the Mayo Anesthesia Safety in Kids study.

BACKGROUND: We hypothesised that exposure to multiple, but not single, procedures requiring general anaesthesia before age 3 yr is associated with a specific pattern of deficits in processing speed and fine motor skills. METHODS: A secondary analysis (using factor and cluster analyses) of data from the Mayo Anesthesia Safety in Kids study was conducted, in which unexposed, singly exposed, and multiply exposed children born in Olmsted County, MN, USA from 1994 to 2007 were sampled using a propensity-guided approach and underwent neuropsychological testing at ages 8-12 or 15-20 yr. RESULTS: In the factor analysis, the data were well fit to a five factor model. For subjects multiply (but not singly) exposed to anaesthesia, a factor reflecting motor skills, visual-motor integration, and processing speed was significantly lower [standardised difference of -0.35 (95% confidence interval {CI} -0.57 to -0.13)] compared with unexposed subjects. No other factor was associated with exposure. Three groups were identified in the cluster analysis, with 106 subjects (10.6%) in Cluster A (lowest performance in most tests), 557 (55.9%) in Cluster B, and 334 (33.5%) in Cluster C (highest performance in most tests). The odds of multiply exposed children belonging to Cluster A was 2.83 (95% CI: 1.49-5.35; P=0.001) compared with belonging to Cluster B; there was no other significant association between exposure status and cluster membership. CONCLUSIONS: Multiple, but not single, exposures to procedures requiring general anaesthesia before age 3 yr are associated with a specific pattern of deficits in neuropsychological tests. Factors predicting which children develop the most pronounced deficits remain unknown.

Performance on the Operant Test Battery in young children exposed to procedures requiring general anaesthesia: the MASK study.

BACKGROUND: It is not known whether the neurotoxicity produced by anaesthetics administered to young animals can also occur in children. Exposure of infant macaques to ketamine impairs performance in selected domains of the Operant Test Battery (OTB), which can also be administered to children. This study determined whether a similar pattern of results on the OTB is found in children exposed to procedures requiring general anaesthesia before age 3 yr. METHODS: We analysed data from the Mayo Anesthesia Safety in Kids (MASK) study, in which unexposed, singly-exposed, and multiply-exposed children born in Olmsted County, MN, USA, from 1994 to 2007 were sampled using a propensity-guided approach and prospectively underwent OTB testing at ages 8-12 or 15-20 yr, using five tasks that generated 15 OTB test scores. RESULTS: In primary analysis, none of the OTB test scores depended upon anaesthesia exposure status when corrected for multiple comparisons. Cluster analysis identified four clusters of subjects, with cluster membership determined by relative performance on the OTB tasks. There was no evidence of association between exposure status and cluster membership. Exploratory factor analysis showed that the OTB scores loaded onto four factors. The score for one factor was significantly less in multiply-exposed children (mean standardised difference -0.28 [95% confidence interval, -0.55 to -0.01; P=0.04]), but significance did not survive a sensitivity analysis accounting for outlying values. CONCLUSIONS: These findings provide little evidence to support the hypothesis that children exposed to procedures requiring anaesthesia show deficits on OTB tasks that are similar to those observed in non-human primates.

Cumulative Anesthesia Exposure in Patients Treated for Early-Onset Scoliosis.

BACKGROUND: Early-onset scoliosis (EOS) is a potentially life-threatening condition that requires early intervention to prevent severe deformity and pulmonary compromise. Observational studies have demonstrated that children receiving multiple procedures requiring general anesthesia are at a higher risk for adverse neurocognitive outcomes. We sought to characterize anesthetic exposure in EOS patients and to determine risk factors for increased exposure. We hypothesized that patients treated for EOS were at risk of receiving large amounts of cumulative anesthesia in childhood because of the need for early intervention to preserve pulmonary function. We sought to determine which factors impacted the amount of anesthesia patients received over the course of treatment. METHODS: Records of all EOS patients treated at a tertiary referral center from 2000 to 2014 were reviewed. Patients with a minimum two-year follow-up, under age 10 at diagnosis, were included. Anesthesia was recorded in three categories: 1) orthopedic surgeries; 2) nonorthopedic surgeries; and 3) imaging/associated procedures. Diagnoses included congenital, idiopathic, neuromuscular, and syndromic scoliosis. Treatment groups were: observation, bracing, Mehta casting, growing spine, or fusion. RESULTS: Mean cumulative anesthesia time was 1606 minutes. Patients with neuromuscular (mean 2132 minutes, p = .006) or congenital scoliosis (1875 minutes, p < .001) received more anesthesia than those with idiopathic scoliosis (754 minutes). Patients treated by fusion (2036 minutes, p < .001) or growing spine (2855 minutes, p < .001) received more anesthesia than those treated by bracing. CONCLUSIONS: Disease severity, non-idiopathic diagnoses, and longer length of follow-up were associated with increased anesthesia. Patients who presented at earlier ages, and those treated by Mehta casting, were more likely to exceed three hours of anesthesia prior to age 3. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: III.

Neuropsychological and Behavioral Outcomes after Exposure of Young Children to Procedures Requiring General Anesthesia: The Mayo Anesthesia Safety in Kids (MASK) Study.

BACKGROUND: Few studies of how exposure of children to anesthesia may affect neurodevelopment employ comprehensive neuropsychological assessments. This study tested the hypothesis that exposure to multiple, but not single, procedures requiring anesthesia before age 3 yr is associated with adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes. METHODS: Unexposed, singly exposed, and multiply exposed children born in Olmsted County, Minnesota, from 1994 to 2007 were sampled using a propensity-guided approach and underwent neuropsychological testing at ages 8 to 12 or 15 to 20 yr. The primary outcome was the Full-Scale intelligence quotient standard score of the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence. Secondary outcomes included individual domains from a comprehensive neuropsychological assessment and parent reports. RESULTS: In total, 997 children completed testing (411, 380, and 206 unexposed, singly exposed, and multiply exposed, respectively). The primary outcome of intelligence quotient did not differ significantly according to exposure status; multiply exposed and singly exposed children scoring 1.3 points (95% CI, -3.8 to 1.2; P = 0.32) and 0.5 points (95% CI, -2.8 to 1.9; P = 0.70) lower than unexposed children, respectively. For secondary outcomes, processing speed and fine motor abilities were decreased in multiply but not singly exposed children; other domains did not differ. The parents of multiply exposed children reported increased problems related to executive function, behavior, and reading. CONCLUSIONS: Anesthesia exposure before age 3 yr was not associated with deficits in the primary outcome of general intelligence. Although secondary outcomes must be interpreted cautiously, they suggest the hypothesis that multiple, but not single, exposures are associated with a pattern of changes in specific neuropsychological domains that is associated with behavioral and learning difficulties.

Epidemiology of general anesthesia prior to age 3 in a population-based birth cohort.

BACKGROUND: Utilization of general anesthesia in children has important policy, economic, and healthcare delivery implications, yet there is little information regarding the epidemiology of these procedures in the United States. AIMS: The primary objective of this study was to describe in a geographically defined population the incidence of procedures requiring general anesthesia up to the child's third birthday, and the patient characteristics associated with receiving these procedures. A secondary objective was to determine the proportion of children in the population who meet the risk criteria promulgated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). METHODS: A retrospective cohort of children born from 1994 to 2007 in Olmsted County, MN was established. Birth certificate information and receipt of general anesthesia before age 3 were collected. Proportional hazard regressions were performed to evaluate the association between characteristics of children and incidence of general anesthesia. RESULTS: Among the 20 922 children in the cohort, 3120 (14.9%) underwent at least 1 general anesthesia before age 3. In multivariate regression, factors independently associated with receiving at least 1 procedure included prematurity, male sex, lower birth weight, cesarean delivery, a non-Hispanic mother, and a White mother, controlling for multiple gestation, number of children previously born, age, education, and marital status of the mother. Seven hundred and twenty-three children (3.5%) had at least 1 subsequent procedure. Estimated gestational age <32 weeks and low birth weight were independently associated with receiving repeated anesthesia. Eight hundred and twenty children (3.9%) had a single prolonged exposure above 3 hours, multiple exposures prior to age 3, or both. CONCLUSION: Approximately 1 in 7 children were exposed to at least 1 episode of general anesthesia before age 3, and approximately 1 in 4 children who received general anesthesia fall within the high-risk category as defined by the recent FDA warning. The apparent disparities in surgical utilization related to race and ethnicity in this study population deserve further exploration.

American College of Surgeons Children's Surgery Verification Quality Improvement Program: What Anesthesiologists Need to Know Now.

A task force of pediatric surgical specialists with the support of The American College of Surgeons recently launched a verification program for pediatric surgery, the Children's Surgery Verification quality improvement program, with the goal of improving pediatric surgical, procedural, and perioperative care. Included in this program are specific standards for the delivery of pediatric anesthesia care across a variety of practice settings. We review the background, available evidence, requirements for verification, and verification process and its implications for the practice of pediatric anesthesia across the country. In addition, we have included a special roundtable interview of 3 recently Children's Surgery Verification-verified program directors to provide an up-to-date real-world perspective of this children's surgery quality improvement program.

Association between Exposure of Young Children to Procedures Requiring General Anesthesia and Learning and Behavioral Outcomes in a Population-based Birth Cohort.

BACKGROUND: Exposure of young animals to general anesthesia causes neurodegeneration and lasting behavioral abnormalities; whether these findings translate to children remains unclear. This study used a population-based birth cohort to test the hypothesis that multiple, but not single, exposures to procedures requiring general anesthesia before age 3 yr are associated with adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes. METHODS: A retrospective study cohort was assembled from children born in Olmsted County, Minnesota, from 1996 to 2000 (inclusive). Propensity matching selected children exposed and not exposed to general anesthesia before age 3 yr. Outcomes ascertained via medical and school records included learning disabilities, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and group-administered ability and achievement tests. Analysis methods included proportional hazard regression models and mixed linear models. RESULTS: For the 116 multiply exposed, 457 singly exposed, and 463 unexposed children analyzed, multiple, but not single, exposures were associated with an increased frequency of both learning disabilities and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (hazard ratio for learning disabilities = 2.17 [95% CI, 1.32 to 3.59], unexposed as reference). Multiple exposures were associated with decreases in both cognitive ability and academic achievement. Single exposures were associated with modest decreases in reading and language achievement but not cognitive ability. CONCLUSIONS: These findings in children anesthetized with modern techniques largely confirm those found in an older birth cohort and provide additional evidence that children with multiple exposures are more likely to develop adverse outcomes related to learning and attention. Although a robust association was observed, these data do not determine whether anesthesia per se is causal.

Anesthetic-Related Neurotoxicity and Neuroimaging in Children: A Call for Conversation.

Each year millions of young children undergo procedures requiring sedation or general anesthesia. An increasing proportion of the anesthetics used are provided to optimize diagnostic imaging studies such as magnetic resonance imaging. Concern regarding the neurotoxicity of sedatives and anesthetics has prompted the US Food and Drug Administration to change labeling of anesthetics and sedative agents warning against repeated or prolonged exposure in young children. This review aims to summarize the risk of anesthesia in children with an emphasis on anesthetic-related neurotoxicity, acknowledge the value of pediatric neuroimaging, and address this call for conversation.

The American College of Surgeons Children's Surgery Verification and Quality Improvement Program: implications for anesthesiologists.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The Task Force for Children's Surgical Care, an ad-hoc multidisciplinary group of invited leaders in pediatric perioperative medicine, was assembled in May 2012 to consider approaches to optimize delivery of children's surgical care in today's competitive national healthcare environment. Over the subsequent 3 years, with support from the American College of Surgeons (ACS) and Children's Hospital Association (CHA), the group established principles regarding perioperative resource standards, quality improvement and safety processes, data collection, and verification that were used to develop an ACS-sponsored Children's Surgery Verification and Quality Improvement Program (ACS CSV). RECENT FINDINGS: The voluntary ACS CSV was officially launched in January 2017 and more than 125 pediatric surgical programs have expressed interest in verification. ACS CSV-verified programs have specific requirements for pediatric anesthesia leadership, resources, and the availability of pediatric anesthesiologists or anesthesiologists with pediatric expertise to care for infants and young children. SUMMARY: The present review outlines the history of the ACS CSV, key elements of the program, and the standards specific to pediatric anesthesiology. As with the pediatric trauma programs initiated more than 40 years ago, this program has the potential to significantly improve surgical care for infants and children in the United States and Canada.