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Use of parent-child tents in pediatric laser surgery
Simon S Yoo1, Judith Liggett, Bernard A Cohen
1Department of Dermatology, Division of Pediatric Dermatology, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, Maryland 21287, USA.
Insights
A parent-child tent can reduce anxiety during pediatric laser surgery. This simple method allows parents to comfort children, potentially avoiding sedation or general anesthesia for procedures below the head and neck.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric laser surgery
- Anesthesia alternatives
- Patient comfort
Background:
- Pediatric pulse dye laser surgery is low-risk but presents challenges.
- Sedation/general anesthesia increases risk compared to the procedure.
- Topical anesthesia helps pain, but anxiety from eye protection remains an issue.
Purpose of the Study:
- To reduce anxiety in children undergoing laser procedures without sedation.
- To facilitate parent-patient interaction during brief procedures below the head and neck.
Main Methods:
- A "parent-child tent" was created using a doubled hospital sheet.
- The tent covered the patient's head and neck, including the parent beside them.
- Topical anesthesia was administered 1-2 hours pre-procedure.
Main Results:
- The parent-child tent was successfully used in pediatric laser surgery patients for 7 years.
- No complications were reported with the use of the tent.
- The method proved highly effective in selected cases.
Conclusions:
- The parent-child tent effectively reduces patient and parent stress during laser surgery.
- This technique, using accessible materials, may eliminate the need for sedation or anesthesia.
- Suitable for brief laser procedures below the head and neck.
Background:
Pediatric pulse dye laser surgery is a low-risk, minimally painful procedure that provides unique challenges to the laser operator. In some centers, all of these procedures are performed under sedation or general anesthesia, which poses a greater risk than the procedure itself. Topical anesthesia has proven to ease the pain associated with these procedures, but anxiety resulting from protective eye wear still poses a major problem in young children.
Objective:
To ease the anxiety of children undergoing brief laser procedures below the head and neck without sedation or general anesthesia by allowing interaction between parents and the patient during the procedure.
Methods:
A standard hospital-issue 142 thread, 75% cotton/25% polyester sheet is doubled and clamped above the head of the treatment table. Forming a tent, it is draped over the patient's head and neck area while also covering the parent who is positioned beside the child. All patients also use topical anesthesia 1 to 2 hours before the procedure.
Results:
The parent-child tent has been used in selected pediatric laser surgery patients at our institution over the past 7 years with great success and without any complications.
Conclusions:
For brief laser procedures below the head and neck areas, the parent-child tent, which can be made from readily available materials, reduces the stress to both patient and parent and may obviate the need for further sedation or anesthesia.