Pediatric emergency care
-
Pediatric emergency care · Nov 2009
Multicenter Study Comparative StudyEpidemiology of psychiatric-related visits to emergency departments in a multicenter collaborative research pediatric network.
Describe the epidemiology of pediatric psychiatric-related visits to emergency departments participating in the Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network. ⋯ Pediatric psychiatric-related visits require more prehospital and emergency department resources and have higher admission/transfer rates than non-psychiatric-related visits within a large national pediatric emergency network.
-
Pediatric emergency care · Nov 2009
Comparative StudyImpact of rapid streptococcal test on antibiotic use in a pediatric emergency department.
Acute pharyngitis is commonly seen in children. Group A beta-hemolytic Streptococcus is the most common bacterial cause of acute pharyngitis and accounts for approximately 15% to 30% of cases in children, but this condition is generally overdiagnosed and overtreated. The availability of rapid streptococcal tests (RSTs) have made this diagnosis simpler and reduced the use of antibiotics. Overuse of antibiotics leads to drug-resistant bacterial strains. Reducing the number of antibiotic prescriptions provided for upper respiratory tract infections has been strongly recommended to limit bacterial resistance. ⋯ The availability of a RST could substantially reduce the unnecessary prescription of antibiotics. This study supports the screening of all children with pharyngitis by performing an RST to guide decision making for antibiotic administration. This strategy has a significant impact on reducing the antibiotic prescription rate to almost 50%. In addition, only 2 children (0.04%) had negative rapid antigen test results with cultures positive for Streptococcus.
-
Pediatric emergency care · Nov 2009
Case ReportsImported Dengue Fever: an important reemerging disease.
Fever in a returned traveler from the tropics often poses a diagnostic challenge to the emergency department physician because of the potential for serious morbidity and mortality associated with certain infections such as falciparum malaria and dengue. We report a case of imported dengue fever in a 15-year-old adolescent boy acquired during a recent travel to Guatemala. Dengue fever is a mosquito-transmitted viral infection of global importance. ⋯ The disease is underreported in the United States along the Mexican border. The epidemiology, clinical manifestations, diagnosis, control, and prevention of this important global reemerging infectious disease are reviewed. Clinicians should include dengue in the differential diagnosis of febrile illness in children who have recently returned from dengue endemic areas.