Pediatric emergency care
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Pediatric emergency care · Feb 2024
A Comparison of State-Specific Pediatric Emergency Medical Facility Recognition Programs, 2020.
Prior research suggests that the presence of state-specific pediatric emergency medical facility recognition programs (PFRPs) is associated with high emergency department (ED) pediatric readiness. The PFRPs aim to improve the quality of pediatric emergency care, but individual state programs differ. We aimed to describe the variation in PFRP characteristics and verification requirements and to describe the availability of pediatric emergency care coordinators (PECCs) in states with PFRPs. ⋯ There is variation in state PFRPs, although all prioritize the presence of a PECC. We encourage further research on the effect of different aspects of PFRPs on patient outcomes.
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Pediatric emergency care · Feb 2024
Incomplete Fractures of Distal Long Bones Among Children in Early Stages of Mobility: Few Concerns for Physical Child Abuse at a Single Pediatric Level I Trauma Center.
This study aimed to describe the characteristics, reported mechanism of injury, fracture morphology, and level of physical abuse concern among children in the early stages of mobility diagnosed with an incomplete distal extremity long bone fracture. ⋯ This age group presents a unique challenge when designing evidence-based algorithms for the detection of occult injuries in emergency departments. Incomplete fractures of a distal limb are commonly related to a fall and may be considered "low specificity" for physical abuse. However, some publications conclude they should prompt universal physical abuse screening. Our small study indicated that the presence or absence of certain risk factors may provide additional information which could help guide the need for a more thorough evaluation for occult injury in early-mobile children with incomplete distal extremity long bone fractures. Ongoing research is warranted.
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Pediatric emergency care · Feb 2024
Strategies to Obtain and Deliver Blood Products Into Critically Injured Children: A Survey of Pediatric Trauma Society Members.
Timely transfusion is associated with improved survival and a reduction in in-hospital morbidity. The benefits of early hemorrhagic shock recognition may be limited by barriers to accessing blood products and their timely administration. We examined how pediatric trauma programs obtain blood products, the types of rapid infusion models used, and the metrics tracked to improve transfusion process efficiency in their emergency department (ED). ⋯ Strategies to improve the timely acquisition and infusion of blood products to critically injured children are underreported. This study examined the current practices that pediatric trauma programs use to transfuse critically injured children and may provide a resource for trauma programs to cite for transfusion-related quality improvement.
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Pediatric emergency care · Feb 2024
Accuracy of Pediatric Interventricular Septal Thickness Measurement Obtained Via Point-of-Care Ultrasound: A Prospective Study.
Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is a genetic, life-threatening cardiovascular disease that often goes unidentified in pediatric patients. Patients are often asymptomatic and neither history or physical examination are reliable to detect the disease. The only reliable method to diagnose hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is with echocardiography to look at interventricular septal thickness. Emerging literature has shown that cardiac point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) performed by pediatric emergency medicine (PEM) physicians is as effective and accurate compared with cardiac echocardiography performed by pediatric cardiologists. ⋯ Point-of-care ultrasound performed by ultrasound-trained PEM physicians to measure pediatric IVSd thickness has a high diagnostic accuracy with excellent agreement with a pediatric cardiologist.
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Pediatric emergency care · Feb 2024
Pediatric Emergency Physicians' Knowledge, Attitudes, and Behaviors Regarding Confidential Adolescent Care.
More than 19 million adolescents seek care in the emergency department (ED) annually. We aimed to describe the knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors related to confidential adolescent care among pediatric ED physicians. ⋯ Respondents reported moderate familiarity with adolescent confidentiality laws. Although they viewed confidential care as something they were comfortable providing, the likelihood of doing so varied. Barriers to confidential care were influenced by their assessment of adolescents' behavioral health risk, which may contribute to health inequity. Future efforts are needed to develop strategies that augment confidential ED care for adolescents.