German Pediatric Intensive Care Transport Registry (PIT): Study Protocol for a Prospective Multicenter Registry

Stefan Winkler^1*Felix Dittgen²Edmondo Hammond³Nele Börner⁴Johanna Kossack⁴Frank Eifinger⁵Ingeborg Van Den Heuvel⁶Elias Klinghammer⁷Victoria Lieftüchter⁸Pia Paul⁹Alba Perez Ortiz²Patricia Bimböse¹⁰Richard Biedermann¹⁰Andre Jakob¹¹Sarah Irlbeck¹²Nadine Mand⁷

• ¹Pediatric Intensive Care Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
• ²Department of Neonatology and Pediatric Intensive Care Medicine, Universitätsmedizin Mannheim, Mannheim, Germany
• ³Department of Pediatrics, Diakonie Kliniken Bad Kreuznach gGmbH, Bad Kreuznach, Germany
• ⁴Department of Pediatric Respiratory Medicine, Immunology and Critical Care Medicine, Charité University Hospital Berlin, Berlin, Germany
• ⁵Division of Neonatology and Pediatric Intensive Care, Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
• ⁶Division of Pediatric Intensive Care Medicine, Department of General Pediatrics, University Hospital Münster, Münster, Germany
• ⁷Neonatology and Pediatric Intensive Care Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Philipps-University Marburg, Marburg, Germany
• ⁸Pediatric Intensive Care Medicine, Dr. v. Hauner Children’s Hospital, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
• ⁹Department of Pediatrics, University Hospital of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
• ¹⁰Department of Pediatrics, University Hospital Jena, Jena, Germany
• ¹¹Interdisciplinary Pediatric Intensive Care Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, University Medical Center Rostock, Rostock, Germany
• ¹²Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, Children’s Hospital and Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine, Medical Faculty, Otto-von-Guericke-University Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany

Background: In contrast to critical care transport of adults or newborns, transport of pediatric critical care patients in Germany is neither regulated by law nor centrally organized. Due to their different therapeutic needs compared to newborns or adults, critically ill children may receive insufficient treatment during transport. In some regions in Germany, pediatric centers provide specialized pediatric retrieval teams, while others organize each transport individually. Currently, no valid data on pediatric critical care transports in Germany are available, nor are they recorded in a structured manner. Objectives: To establish a nationwide registry for pediatric intensive care transports in Germany. The aim is to describe and analyze the need for and current practice of specialized transports. This data may be used for future demand planning. Setting: Transports are documented by pediatric centers admitting pediatric patients via intensive care transports. Inclusion criteria: All interhospital pediatric intensive care transports of children, aged >27 days and >41+0 weeks of corrected gestational, age to <18 years, are eligible for data entry. Methods: The study is designed as a prospective, multicenter registry. Transport data will be collected locally at participating pediatric centers and then submitted digitally and anonymized via a secure, web-based platform. Discussion: We anticipate high participation from pediatric intensive care units and expect to present valid data on the need for pediatric intensive care transports in Germany. This data may serve as a foundation for nationwide demand planning for pediatric intensive care transport resources.