Marc R. Matthews

Scald burns in young children--a review of Arizona burn center pediatric patients and a proposal for prevention in the Hispanic community.

Arizona Burn Center staff observed an increasing number of pediatric scald burn admissions. Therefore, a retrospective study was conducted to identify scald demographics and etiologies. Focus groups were subsequently conducted to determine burn prevention knowledge in the target community. Arizona Burn Center scald admission variables (ages 0–5 years) reviewed included age, sex, ethnicity, TBSA, body parts burned, occurrence month and location, caregiver present, child and caregiver activities when injured, payor source, length of stay, parental language, and zip code. High-risk zip code area focus groups were then conducted. There were a total of 170 pediatric patients, aged 0 to 5 years, admitted to the burn center during 2005 to 2006. Of this total, 124 of the patients were admitted for scald burns, accounting for 59% of all pediatric burn admissions. Scald burn patient’s demographics included male (52%), female (48%) with a mean age of 1.7 years. Majority ethnicity was Hispanic (63%). The mean TBSA was 8% with mean length of stay of 8 days. The remaining pediatric admissions for children aged 0 to 5 were for burns caused by fire or flame 15%, contact with a hot object 13%, friction burns 7%, chemical burns 3%, and electrical burns 3%. Demographics for the combined etiologies included an identical sex breakdown with male (52%) and female (48%). The majority ethnicity in the nonscald group was also Hispanic at 59% with a mean length of stay of 7 days and an average TBSA of 9.5%. Main etiologies of scald burns included hot water (25%), soup (24%), and coffee or tea (21%). Most common child behaviors were pulling hot substance from stove (24%), from countertop (13%), and having liquid spilled on them (13%) typically while caregiver was cooking. Mean TBSA was 8% with mean length of stay (8 days). Scalds occurred in the kitchen (83%) and mainly in child’s home (94%). Mother was primary caregiver (78%). Payor source was Medicaid (86%) and the average admission cost was

The impact of decision aids to enhance shared decision making for diabetes (the DAD study): protocol of a cluster randomized trial

60,075. Only 36% of parents spoke Spanish as their primary language. Scalds (43%) usually occurred during year’s first quarter (P < .001). Focus group participants (85%) reported receiving no prior burn prevention education and preferred to receive prevention instruction in small groups through established community agencies. Results suggest that culturally sensitive, bilingual scald prevention education, targeting Hispanics, is needed to create awareness of the frequency, severity, and danger associated with pediatric scalds.

Significant Pediatric Morbidity and Mortality from Intracranial Ballistic Injuries Caused by Nonpowder Gunshot Wounds

BackgroundShared decision making contributes to high quality healthcare by promoting a patient-centered approach. Patient involvement in selecting the components of a diabetes medication program that best match the patient’s values and preferences may also enhance medication adherence and improve outcomes. Decision aids are tools designed to involve patients in shared decision making, but their adoption in practice has been limited. In this study, we propose to obtain a preliminary estimate of the impact of patient decision aids vs. usual care on measures of patient involvement in decision making, diabetes care processes, medication adherence, glycemic and cardiovascular risk factor control, and resource utilization. In addition, we propose to identify, describe, and explain factors that promote or inhibit the routine embedding of decision aids in practice.Methods/DesignWe will be conducting a mixed-methods study comprised of a cluster-randomized, practical, multicentered trial enrolling clinicians and their patients (n = 240) with type 2 diabetes from rural and suburban primary care practices (n = 8), with an embedded qualitative study to examine factors that influence the incorporation of decision aids into routine practice. The intervention will consist of the use of a decision aid (Statin Choice and Aspirin Choice, or Diabetes Medication Choice) during the clinical encounter. The qualitative study will include analysis of video recordings of clinical encounters and in-depth, semi-structured interviews with participating patients, clinicians, and clinic support staff, in both trial arms.DiscussionUpon completion of this trial, we will have new knowledge about the effectiveness of diabetes decision aids in these practices. We will also better understand the factors that promote or inhibit the successful implementation and normalization of medication choice decision aids in the care of chronic patients in primary care practices.Trial registrationNCT00388050

Empiric, Broad-Spectrum Antibiotic Therapy with an Aggressive De-Escalation Strategy Does Not Induce Gram-Negative Pathogen Resistance in Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia

Nonpowder (ball-bearing and pellet) weapons derive their source of energy from compressed air or carbon dioxide. Such weapons are dangerous toys that cause serious injuries and even death to children and adolescents. A retrospective chart review study was undertaken to describe nonpowder gun injuries at a southwestern US urban level I adult and pediatric trauma center. Specific emphasis was placed on intracranial injuries. Over the past 6 years, a total of 29 pediatric and 7 adult patients were identified as having nonpowder firearm injuries. The patient population was overwhelmingly male (89.7%; mean age, 11 years). Overall, 17 out of 29 pediatric patients (56.8%) sustained serious injury. Nine patients (30.0%) required operation, 6 (20.7%) sustained significant morbidity, and there were 2 deaths (6.9%). Injuries to the brain, eye, head, and neck were the most common sites of injury (65.6%). Specific intracranial injuries in 3 pediatric patients are described that resulted in the death of 2 children. We suggest that age warning should be adjusted to 18 years or older for unsupervised use to be considered safe of these potentially lethal weapons.

Meaningful conversations in living with and treating chronic conditions: development of the ICAN discussion aid

BACKGROUND Early, empiric, broad-spectrum antibiotics followed by de-escalation to pathogen-specific therapy is the standard of care for ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP). In our surgical intensive care unit (SICU), imipenem-cilastatin (I-C) in combination with tobramycin (TOB) or levofloxacin (LEV) has been used until quantitative bronchoalveolar lavage results are finalized, at which time de-escalation occurs to pathogen-specific agents. With this practice, however, alterations in antimicrobial resistance remain a concern. Our hypothesis was that this strict regimen does not alter antimicrobial susceptibility of common gram-negative VAP pathogens in our SICU. METHODS After Institutional Review Board approval, a retrospective review of SICU-specific antibiograms was performed for the sensitivities of common gram-negative VAP pathogens. Time periods were defined as early (January-June 2005) and late (July-December 2006). Chart review of empiric and de-escalation antibiotic usage was obtained. Data were collated, and statistical significance was assessed with the chi-square test using the on-line Simple Interactive Statistical Analysis tool. RESULTS Imipenem-cilastatin was used 198 times for empiric VAP coverage (811 patient-days), whereas TOB and LEV were given a total of 149 (564 patient-days) and 61 (320 patient-days) times, respectively. Collectively, the susceptibility of gram-negative organisms to I-C did not change (early 91.4%; late 97%; p = 0.33). Individually, non-significant trends to greater sensitivity to I-C were noted for both Pseudomonas aeruginosa (early 85.7%; late 90.9%; p = 0.73) and Acinetobacter baumannii (early 80%; late 100%; p = 0.13). Further, both TOB (early 77.1%; late 70.0%; p = 0.49) and LEV (early 74.3%; late 70.0%; p = 0.67) were found to maintain their susceptibility profiles. The frequency of resistant gram-positive VAPs was unchanged during the study period. Our de-escalation compliance (by 96 h) was 78% for I-C, 77.2% for TOB, and 59% for LEV. When infections requiring I-C were removed from the analysis, de-escalation compliance was improved to 92%. CONCLUSIONS In our SICU, early, empiric broad-spectrum VAP therapy followed by de-escalation to pathogen-specific agents did not alter antimicrobial resistance and is a valid practice. Further, our compliance with de-escalation practices was higher than published rates.

Acquired Factor V Deficiency Associated With Exposure to Bovine Thrombin in a Burn Patient

BackgroundThe needs of the growing population of complex patients with multiple chronic conditions calls for a different approach to care. Clinical teams need to acknowledge, respect, and support the work that patients do and the capacity they mobilize to enact this work, and to adapt and self-manage. Tools that enable this approach to care are needed.MethodsUsing user-centered design principles, we set out to create a discussion aid for use by patients, clinicians, and other health professionals during clinical encounters. We observed clinical encounters, visited patient homes, and dialogued with patient support groups. We then developed and tested prototypes in routine clinical practice. Then we refined a final prototype with extensive stakeholder feedback.ResultsFrom this process resulted the ICAN Discussion Aid, a tool completed by the patient and reviewed during the consultation in which patients classified domains that contribute to capacity as sources of burden or satisfaction; clinical demands were also classified as sources of help or burden. The clinical review facilitated by ICAN generates hypotheses regarding why some treatment plans may be problematic and may not be enacted in the patient’s situation.ConclusionWe successfully created a discussion aid to elucidate and share insights about the capacity patients have to enact the treatment plan and hypotheses as to why this plan may or may not be enacted. Next steps involve the evaluation of the impact of the ICAN Discussion Aid on clinical encounters with a variety of health professionals and the impact of ICAN-informed treatment plans on patient-important outcomes.

Impact of symptom remission on outpatient visits in depressed primary care patients treated with collaborative care management and usual care.

Topical hemostatic products containing thrombin are commonly used in burn surgery to facilitate focal hemostasis and graft adherence. Until recently, thrombin was available only from a bovine source, which has been documented to produce antibodies to endogenous clotting factors and to induce coagulation defects and severe bleeding complications. This report documents the first case of factor V deficiency and profound coagulopathy in a burn patient after intraoperative exposure to bovine thrombin. A 38-year-old woman was admitted after a 75% total body surface area burn. The patient underwent repeated excision and grafting during which an epinephrine solution that contained bovine thrombin was used to facilitate hemostasis. During the fourth and subsequent operative procedures, the patient developed profound coagulopathy as evidenced by excessive bleeding and abnormal laboratory coagulation parameters, requiring the administration of supplemental clotting factors through fresh frozen plasma and cryoprecipitate. Hematology work-up revealed a factor V deficiency. Subsequent procedures in which bovine thrombin was avoided were uneventful. The use of topical bovine thrombin in patients who have been previously exposed results in an increased risk of perioperative coagulopathy and clinically significant bleeding complications. Thus, the use of bovine-thrombin-containing products should be avoided in burn patients with prior exposure to bovine thrombin.

Prolonged Care Management for Depression A Case-Controlled Study of Those Enrolled for More Than One Year

Depression symptoms contribute to significant morbidity and health care utilization. The aim of this study was to determine the impact of symptom improvement (to remission) on outpatient clinical visits by depressed primary care patients. This study was a retrospective chart review analysis of 1733 primary care patients enrolled into collaborative care management (CCM) or usual care (UC) with 6-month follow-up data. Baseline data (including demographic information, clinical diagnosis, and depression severity) and 6-month follow-up data (Patient Health Questionnaire scores and the number of outpatient visits utilized) were included in the data set. To control for individual patient complexity and pattern of usage, the number of outpatient visits for 6 months prior to enrollment also was measured as was the presence of medical comorbidities. Multiple logistic regression analysis demonstrated that clinical remission at 6 months was an independent predictor of outpatient visit outlier status (>8 visits) (odds ratio [OR] 0.609, confidence interval (CI) 0.460-0.805, P<0.01) when controlling for all other independent variables including enrollment into CCM or UC. The OR of those patients not in remission at 6 months having outpatient visit outlier status was the inverse of this at 1.643 (CI 1.243-2.173). The most predictive variable for determining increased outpatient visit counts after diagnosis of depression was increased outpatient visits prior to diagnosis (OR 4.892, CI 3.655-6.548, P<0.01). In primary care patients treated for depression, successful treatment to remission at 6 months decreased the likelihood of the patient having more than 8 visits during the 6 months after diagnosis.

Improving hypertension control in diabetes: a multisite quality improvement project that applies a 3-step care bundle to a chronic disease care model for diabetes with hypertension.

Introduction: Collaborative care management (CCM) for the treatment of depression has been shown to be an effective therapy. CCM can be seen as a resource intensive treatment. Early identification of patients who would not be effectively treated with CCM could allow for alteration of therapy or change in modality. Methods: A retrospective case-controlled study used 132 patients with prolonged enrollment (>1 year) in CCM (cases) and 396 randomized CCM patients who achieved remission within 6 months (controls). The hypothesis was that by studying the epidemiology of patients in prolonged care management (PCM), characteristics could be determined to help define this group. Results: With regression modeling, the odds of a patient having PCM at 1 year was highly significant for those unmarried patients (odds ratio [OR] = 1.736, confidence interval [CI] = 1.115-2.703, P = .015) with dysthymia (OR = 2.362, CI = 1.104-5.052, P = .027) and severe depression (OR = 2.856, CI = 1.551-5.260, P = .001). The adjusted baseline Patient Health Questionnaire–9 (PHQ-9) score showed a difference of 16.0 for the cases versus 14.8 for the controls (P < .001). By 10 weeks, the difference is much larger at (10.7 vs 4.9, P < .001). At 26 weeks, the control group had an adjusted average PHQ-9 score of 2.0, whereas the case group was still elevated at 10.2 (P < .001). Conclusions: Case-controlled analysis of PCM patients demonstrated independent predictors (such as unmarried status, diagnosis of dysthymia or severe depression), however, no baseline data was of sufficient clarity to suggest changes in clinical practice. The trend of the patient’s PHQ-9 over time was strongly suggestive of allowing differentiation between the groups.

Urinary fluticasone propionate-17beta-carboxylic acid to assess asthma therapy adherence

Hypertension in diabetes patients leads to significant morbidity and mortality. Nonetheless blood pressure (BP) control in patients with diabetes remains disappointing. The authors applied a care bundle to decrease the proportion of patients with BP exceeding 130/80. Teams from 4 sites in 3 states (Minnesota, Florida, and Arizona) developed a bundle consisting of a standardized BP process, an order set, and a patient goal. Baseline data were collected in the first 12 weeks, followed by 6 weeks of implementing changes. The final 16 weeks represented the intervention. There was a statistically significant decrease in the proportion of patients with uncontrolled BP in 3 of 4 sites (P < .0001 in all 3 sites demonstrating improvement). There was a statistically significant improvement in the satisfaction survey (P = .0011). Implementing an evidence-based care bundle for hypertension in diabetes mellitus can improve BP outcomes.