The dawn of Artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare stands as a milestone in medical innovation. Different medical fields are heavily involved, and pediatric emergency medicine is no exception. We conducted a narrative review structured in two parts. The first part explores the theoretical principles of AI, providing all the necessary background to feel confident with these new state-of-the-art tools. The second part presents an informative analysis of AI models in pediatric emergencies. We examined PubMed and Cochrane Library from inception up to April 2024. Key applications include triage optimization, predictive models for traumatic brain injury assessment, and computerized sepsis prediction systems. In each of these domains, AI models outperformed standard methods. The main barriers to a widespread adoption include technological challenges, but also ethical issues, age-related differences in data interpretation, and the paucity of comprehensive datasets in the pediatric context. Future feasible research directions should address the validation of models through prospective datasets with more numerous sample sizes of patients. Furthermore, our analysis shows that it is essential to tailor AI algorithms to specific medical needs. This requires a close partnership between clinicians and developers. Building a shared knowledge platform is therefore a key step.

Background and Objectives: Acute poisoning is a frequent cause of pediatric emergency department visits and represents a significant public health issue, with children particularly vulnerable due to developmental and behavioral factors. This study aimed to characterize the clinical and demographic profiles of pediatric patients presenting with acute intoxication over a ten-year period (2014–2023) and to assess the impact of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on patterns of pediatric poisoning. Materials and Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted at the Fondazione Policlinico A. Gemelli in Rome, including all patients under 18 years presenting with acute intoxication between September 2014 and June 2023. Data were extracted from electronic medical records and categorized by age group (0–5, 6–11, and 12–18 years) and by three pandemic-related periods: Pre-COVID-19 (to March 2020), COVID-19 (March 2020–June 2021), and Post-COVID-19 (June 2021 onwards). Statistical analyses included chi-squared tests and Cramér’s V for effect size. Results: Of 794 PED admissions for acute intoxication, 64.5% involved children aged 0–5 years, and 24.9% involved adolescents. Most events occurred at home (63.2%) and were accidental (76.4%), with voluntary intoxications exclusively among adolescents. Drug ingestion was the leading cause (39.3%), followed by solvents (17.8%) and alcohol (7.8%), with alcohol-related cases rising markedly post-pandemic. Statistically significant associations were found between the pandemic period and both age group and intentionality of poisoning (p < 0.00001), but not gender. Voluntary and recreational intoxications increased during and after the pandemic, particularly among adolescents. Conclusions: Pediatric acute poisoning displays a bimodal age distribution, with accidental exposures predominant in young children, and intentional cases predominant in adolescents. The COVID-19 pandemic was associated with an increase in adolescent voluntary and recreational intoxications. These findings underscore the need for targeted prevention strategies addressing both household safety for young children and mental health and substance use interventions for adolescents.

Background/Objectives: Bell’s palsy (BP) is a neurological disorder characterized by sudden unilateral peripheral facial paralysis. The etiology in children remains largely unknown, and standardized management strategies are lacking. The aim of this retrospective cohort study is to evaluate clinical features, laboratory markers, and therapeutic options associated with recovery to identify potential prognostic factors and validate therapeutic strategies, with a particular focus on the role of corticosteroids and vitamin supplementation. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted on 88 children (aged < 18 years) diagnosed with BP at a single tertiary care center between 2010 and 2023. Clinical data, including House–Brackmann (HB) scores, were collected at baseline and at a two-month follow-up. Statistical analysis was performed to assess the associations between demographic, clinical, and laboratory parameters with recovery outcomes. Prednisone and vitamin supplementation were administered at the discretion of the treating pediatrician. Results: In total, 81.8% of patients achieved complete recovery at 2-month follow-up (HB grade 1). No significant associations were found between recovery and gender, age, side of paralysis, initial HB grade, or laboratory markers. However, the use of prednisone was associated with a higher rate of incomplete recovery (p = 0.024), with higher doses correlating with poorer outcomes (p = 0.022). Vitamin supplementation showed no significant impact. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that corticosteroid therapy may not be a disease-modifying factor that ultimately influences outcomes in pediatric BP. Further large-scale studies are needed to define evidence-based protocols for managing pediatric BP.

Background: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) and hypoxic–ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) are major causes of long-term neurological disability in children, with limited options for effective neuronal recovery. Recent research has highlighted the therapeutic potential of nerve growth factor (NGF) in promoting neural repair through mechanisms such as neuroprotection, neurogenesis, and the modulation of neuroinflammation. This review evaluates the current evidence on NGF as a treatment strategy for pediatric brain injury, emphasizing its mechanisms of action and translational clinical applications. Methods: A comprehensive review was conducted using the PubMed, Scopus, and Cochrane CENTRAL databases to identify studies published between 1 January 1978 and 1 March 2025, investigating NGF in the context of brain injury. The inclusion criteria comprised studies assessing neurological outcomes through clinical scales, biochemical markers, neuroimaging, or electrophysiological examinations. Results: Seventeen studies met the inclusion criteria, encompassing both preclinical and clinical research. Preclinical models consistently demonstrated that NGF administration reduces neuroinflammation, enhances neurogenesis, and supports neuronal survival following TBI and HIE. Clinical studies, including case reports of pediatric patients treated with intranasal NGF, reported improvements in motor and cognitive function, neuroimaging findings, and electrophysiological parameters, with no significant adverse effects observed. Conclusions: NGF demonstrates significant promise as a neuroprotective and neuroregenerative agent in pediatric brain injury, with both experimental and early clinical evidence supporting its safety and efficacy. Large-scale controlled clinical trials are warranted to validate these preliminary findings and to determine the optimal dosage regimens and administration schedules for NGF in the treatment of TBI and HIE.

The dawn of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in healthcare stands as a milestone in medical innovation. A plethora of different medical fields are heavily involved and pediatric emergency medicine is no exception. These new tools do not merely provide more advanced and efficient systems for patients’ diagnosis, management and treatment. They rather concern a strict shift from traditional methods based upon broad categories towards a more personalized healthcare. AI offers many promises in pediatric emergency medicine with a wide range of applications involving clinical decision making, patients’ flows management and prioritization. Main barriers to a widespread diffusion involve technological challenges but also ethical issues and the paucity of extensive datasets in pediatric contexts. We conducted a narrative review structured in two parts. The first part explores the theoretical principles of AI, providing all the necessary background to feel confident with these new state-of-the-art tools. The second part presents an informative analysis of AI models in pediatric emergencies, pointing out the actual applications and challenges until future feasible research perspectives.