Post-Traumatic Stress Related to Pediatric Illness and Injury

The chapter describes the peculiarities of individual and family responses to the experience of children's medical illness, injury and medical treatment as referred to the construct of traumatic stress. On the basis of the most recent literature, author exoplores the precitive role of a series of factors considered to favor or to inhibit the onset of traumatic stress in peditric illness and injuries; these include: sociodemographic variables preceding the traumatic event; the objective nature of the traumatic event and its subjective evaluation; acute distress and physiological arousal reactions; and finally the parent-child relationship, family functioning and social support.