Issues in the Care of Children With Chronic Illness

Abstract

This book is an outgrowth of the Vanderbilt Institute for Public Policy Studies and accents 11 "target" chronic illnesses in childhood: juvenile diabetes, neuromuscular diseases, cystic fibrosis, spina bifida, sickle cell anemia, congenital heart disease, chronic kidney diseases, thalassemia and hemophilia, leukemia, craniofacial birth defects, and asthma. The 42 chapters have been written by 71 contributors and are grouped into seven parts. The first part of the book comprises six chapters dealing with basic concepts in the care of children with chronic illness. The commonalities of these disorders, from genetics to psychosocial implications, are stressed. The second and largest part of the book has one chapter each dealing with the targeted conditions. In the introductory chapter on the demographics of chronic illness, the author estimates that approximately 2% of US children are significantly affected by the 11 chronic disorders highlighted in the book. Although the incidence of these conditions likely