Epidemiology of Pediatric Surgery in the United States

Abstract

On average, 3.9 million surgeries are performed on children 0-17 years of age in the United States each year. Significant disparities exist in surgical care for children, with black and Hispanic children having lower rates of surgery over and above contribution of other disparity domains. These findings in a nationally representative sample highlight the need for national policies to eliminate disparity of care received by minority children.