The NIH childhood adversity portfolio: unmet needs, emerging challenges

Despite the significant increase in pediatric funding, an important question is whether recent changes in the burden of disease and conditions (child and adolescent mortality and nonfatal health loss) are reflected in the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) allocation process. As it sets future priorities, NIH acknowledges a need to scan the landscape for unmet needs and emerging challenges so that supported research translates into meaningful health benefits. Our focus is to scan the pediatric budgetary landscape, report research funding for childhood adversity and adverse childhood experiences, and to illuminate gun violence, suicide, and drug abuse/overdose as prime examples of pediatric unmet needs and emerging challenges. Our findings suggest that pediatric researchers must reconceptualize gun violence as a form of childhood adversity and adverse childhood experiences, as we also need to do for other leading causes of child and adolescent mortality such as suicide and drug abuse/overdose. As it relates to the leading cause of death for children and adolescents, pediatric-related gun violence research spending remains only 0.0017% of the NIH pediatric portfolio.

Automated summary

Although pediatric funding has increased significantly, the question remains whether the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has reflected recent changes in disease burden and conditions in its allocation process. This study focuses on childhood adversity, gun violence, suicide, and drug abuse/overdose as unmet needs and emerging challenges. Pediatric researchers need to reconceptualize gun violence as a form of childhood adversity, as well as address other leading causes of child and adolescent mortality such as suicide and drug abuse/overdose. Spending on pediatric-related gun violence research remains minimal, accounting for only 0.0017% of the NIH pediatric portfolio.