Michael L. Forbes

Comparative costs of hospitalisation among infants at high risk for respiratory syncytial virus lower respiratory tract infection during the first year of life

Abstract Objective: This retrospective cohort study compared the total cost of hospitalisation due to respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) lower respiratory tract infection (LRI) during the first year of life between late-preterm (33–36 weeks gestational age [wGA]) and term (≥37 wGA) infants. Research design and methods: A large national claims database of commercially insured members was examined to identify hospital admissions associated with RSV between January 2003 and June 2007 among infants at high risk for RSV LRI, including late-preterm infants. Hospital use and costs were compared with those of a reference cohort of term infants with RSV. Results: The cost of hospitalisation for RSV among late-preterm infants with at least one hospital admission associated with RSV (n=173) was twice that of term infants (n=1,983;

A multicentered prospective analysis of diagnosis, risk factors, and outcomes associated with pediatric ventilator-associated pneumonia.

20,269 vs. 9,635; p< 0.001). The mean length of stay was also higher (5.3 vs. 3.4 days; p< 0.001). Approximately 21.9% of hospitalisations for late-preterm infants included an intensive care unit admission compared with 9.6% among term infants (p< 0.001). Limitations: Reliance on ICD-9 codes to identify potential cohort members may result in misclassification and underreporting the cohort size for conditions of interest. Conclusions: Hospitalisation costs and length of stay due to RSV LRI were significantly greater among late-preterm infants compared with term infants and higher than general estimates previously reported in the broader paediatric population.

Missed opportunities during pediatric residency training: report of a 10-year follow-up survey in critical care transport medicine.

Objective: To assess risk factors and outcomes associated with pediatric ventilator-associated pneumonia. Design: Multicentered prospective observational cohort. Setting: Children’s hospitals in the United States. Patients: Mechanically ventilated patients less than 18 years old. Measurements and Main Results: Prospective evaluation of the prevalence, risk factors, and outcomes of pediatric ventilator-associated pneumonia along with evaluation of diagnostic criterion for pediatric ventilator-associated pneumonia. The prevalence of pediatric ventilator-associated pneumonia was 5.2% (n = 2,082), for a rate of 7.1/1,000 ventilator days. Patients with ventilator-associated pneumonia had a longer unadjusted ICU length of stay (p < 0.0001) and increased length of mechanical ventilation by more than 11 days (p < 0.0001). After adjustment for patient factors, ICU length of stay (p = 0.03) and mechanical ventilation days (p = 0.001) remained significant. Patients with ventilator-associated pneumonia were almost three times more likely to die (p = 0.007). Independent risk factors for ventilator-associated pneumonia were reintubation and part-time ventilation. Conclusions: Pediatric ventilator-associated pneumonia is common in mechanically ventilated pediatric patients. These patients have longer length of stay, longer duration of mechanical ventilation, and increased risk for mortality.

Serum palivizumab level is associated with decreased severity of respiratory syncytial virus disease in high-risk infants

Objectives The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education requires pediatric residency training programs to provide exposure to the prehospital management and transport of patients. The authors hypothesized that compared with a similar study a decade prior, current pediatric residency training programs have reduced requirements for participation in transport medicine, thus reducing further the opportunities for residents to learn the management of critically ill infants and children. Methods In 2009, a questionnaire was distributed to 182 pediatric residency program directors. The authors obtained information regarding the neonatal and pediatric transport teams, the training program size, and the pediatric residents’ role in the transport team. Results Sixty-eight (37%) of the 182 surveyed institutions responded. Residents were involved in neonatal and pediatric transports in 42.8% and 55.0% of programs, respectively. When involved in transports, residents were the neonatal and pediatric team leaders 44.4% and 42.4% of the time, respectively. Evaluation of resident transport performance occurred consistently in only 23.3% (neonatal) and 21% (pediatric) of programs. Most programs (90.3%) endorsed the concept of a curriculum that would uniquely provide an integrated experience in critical care transport to increase resident exposure, competence, and confidence. Conclusions Pediatric residency participation in neonatal and pediatric critical care transport continued to decline among training programs. Residents participating in transports were less likely to function as team leaders and frequently did not receive performance evaluations. Most respondents welcomed a curriculum that would increase residents’ exposure to the critically ill infants and children transported by neonatal and pediatric teams.

Risk Factors for Failed Tracheal Intubation in Pediatric and Neonatal Critical Care Specialty Transport

Monthly doses of palivizumab, an RSV-specific monoclonal antibody, reduce RSV-related hospitalizations (RSVH) in high-risk children; however, no specific palivizumab level has been correlated with disease severity in humans. A post hoc analysis of a previous randomized, placebo-controlled trial evaluated the relationship between serum palivizumab level at the time of RSVH and disease severity. Pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) admission was the primary severity marker. Relationships were evaluated between disease severity and gestational age, age at enrollment, age at RSVH, presence of bronchopulmonary dysplasia, sex, race, multiple birth, household smoking, daycare attendance, sibling(s), family history of atopy, duration between most recent palivizumab dose and RSVH, and palivizumab level at RSVH. Forty-two (87.5%) of 48 palivizumab recipients with RSVH had palivizumab levels drawn; 11 were admitted to the PICU. Mean palivizumab levels were lower in PICU-admitted subjects (47.2 μg/mL) vs. non-PICU subjects (98.7 μg/mL; P < 0.0001); there were no statistically significant differences in other variables examined. The probability of PICU admission declined with higher palivizumab levels; there were no PICU admissions with levels ≥ 92 μg/mL. In multivariate analyses, palivizumab level was the only independent predictor of PICU admission (P = 0.009). Palivizumab level also correlated with duration of RSVH and PICU stay, supplemental oxygen use and duration, and mechanical ventilation use and duration (P < 0.05). Higher palivizumab level was associated with decreased disease severity in high-risk infants with RSVH. Findings suggest that palivizumab level has clinical relevance, and adherence to timely monthly dosing may confer additional protection among high-risk children receiving palivizumab.

Effects of a Gastric Feeding Protocol on Efficiency of Enteral Nutrition in Critically Ill Infants and Children

Abstract Objective. Nearly 200,000 pediatric and neonatal transports occur in the United States each year with some patients requiring tracheal intubation. First-pass intubation rates in both pediatric and adult transport literature are variable as are the factors that influence intubation success. This study sought to determine risk factors for failed tracheal intubation in neonatal and pediatric transport. Methods. A retrospective chart review was performed over a 2.5-year period. Data were collected from a hospital-based neonatal/pediatric critical care transport team that transports 2,500 patients annually, serving 12,000 square miles. Patients were eligible if they were transported and tracheally intubated by the critical care transport team. Patients were categorized into two groups for data analysis: (1) no failed intubation attempts and (2) at least one failed intubation attempt. Data were tabulated using Epi Info Version 3.5.1 and analyzed using SPSSv17.0. Results. A total of 167 patients were eligible for enrollment and were cohorted by age (48% pediatric versus 52% neonatal). Neonates were more likely to require multiple attempts at intubation when compared to the pediatric population (69.6% versus 30.4%, p = 0.001). Use of benzodiazepines and neuromuscular blockade was associated with increased successful first attempt intubation rates (p = 0.001 and 0.008, respectively). Use of opiate premedication was not associated with first-attempt intubation success. The presence of comorbid condition(s) was associated with at least one failed intubation attempt (p = 0.006). Factors identified with increasing odds of at least one intubation failure included, neonatal patients (OR 3.01), tracheal tube size ≤ 2.5 mm (OR 3.78), use of an uncuffed tracheal tube (OR 6.85), and the presence of a comorbid conditions (OR 2.64). Conclusions. There were higher rates of tracheal intubation failure in transported neonates when compared to pediatric patients. This risk may be related to the lack of benzodiazepine and neuromuscular blocking agents used to facilitate intubation. The presence of a comorbid condition is associated with a higher risk of tracheal intubation failure.

Heliox in Children with Croup: A Strategy to Hasten Improvement

Objective: Enteral nutrition (EN) has well-established benefits in critically ill children. Optimally, full nutritional support should be achieved expeditiously. The authors hypothesized that a pro...

Implementation of a Modified WHO Pediatric Procedural Sedation Safety Checklist and Its Impact on Risk Reduction

OBJECTIVE Upper airway obstruction is responsive to the reduction in airflow turbulence provided by helium/oxygen (heliox) admixture. Our pediatric critical care transport team (PCCTT) has used heliox for children with upper airway obstruction from croup. We sought to describe our experience with heliox on transport and hypothesized that heliox-treated children with croup would show a more rapid clinical improvement. METHODS Children with croup transported by our PCCTT and admitted to the PICU were evaluated. We analyzed pretransport care, transport interventions, and outcomes. Croup scores (Modified Taussig) were assigned retrospectively according to respiratory therapy charting. Data were analyzed using appropriate statistical tests, including Pearsons chi-square test, Fishers exact test, Mann-Whitney U rank comparison, and two-sample t-test. RESULTS Thirty-five children met inclusion criteria. Demographics were similar between groups. The pretransport medical care was similar between groups. Children receiving heliox had a higher baseline croup score [mean (SD) = 5.7(2.3) vs no heliox 2.9 (2.0), P < 0.001]. The improvement in croup scores over the first 60 minutes of transport was more rapid in the heliox-treated children (P < 0.001). There was no difference in the number of children requiring additional nebulized racemic epinephrine during transport. The PICU length of stay (P = 0.59) and hospital length of stay (P = 0.64) were similar between groups. CONCLUSION Heliox added to standard transport treatment for critically ill children with croup provides a more rapid improvement in croup scores. Heliox for croup during transport does not prolong intensive care unit stay. A prospective clinical trial is warranted to evaluate heliox in pediatric transport.

Case 3: Abnormal Eye Movements and Congestion in a 3-month-old Boy.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Major adverse events (AEs) related to pediatric deep sedation occur at a low frequency but can be of high acuity. The high volume of deep sedations performed by 3 departments at our institution provided an opportunity to reduce variability and increase safety through implementation of a procedural sedation safety checklist. We hypothesized that implementation of a checklist would improve compliance of critical safety elements (CSEs) (primary outcome variable) and reduce the sedation-related AE rate (secondary outcome variable). METHODS This process improvement project was divided into 5 phases: a retrospective analysis to assess variability in capture of CSE within 3 departments that perform deep sedation and the association between noncapture of CSE and AE occurrence (phase 1), design of the checklist and trial in simulation (phase 2), provider education (phase 3), implementation and interim analysis of checklist completion (phase 4), and final analysis of completion and impact on outcome (phase 5). RESULTS We demonstrated interdepartmental variability in compliance with CSE completion prechecklist implementation, and we identified elements associated with AEs. Completion of provider education was 100% in all 3 departments. Final analysis showed a checklist completion rate of 75%, and its use significantly improved capture of several critical safety elements. Its use did not significantly reduce AEs (P = .105). CONCLUSIONS This study demonstrates that the implementation of a sedation checklist improved process adherence and capture of critical safety elements; however, it failed to show a significant reduction in sedation-related AEs.

SENTINEL1: An Observational Study of Respiratory Syncytial Virus Hospitalizations among U.S. Infants Born at 29 to 35 Weeks' Gestational Age Not Receiving Immunoprophylaxis

1. Joanna Wigfield, DO* 2. Aadil Kakajiwala, MD* 3. Michael L. Forbes, MD* 4. Prasad Bodas, MD* 1. *Akron Childrens Hospital, Akron, OH. A 3-month-old Amish boy presents to the emergency department with recurrent nasal congestion since birth. He has had no fevers, cough, or difficulty breathing. He was born at term without complications. His parents report that his growth and development are overall appropriate, but his mother expresses concern about abnormal eye movements. The father has moderate deficiency of Factor IX. Physical examination results include: temperature 98.4°F (36.9°C), heart rate 140 beats/min, respiratory rate 40 breaths/min, and pulse oximetry 99% in room air. His length is 59.7 cm (7th percentile), weight is 6.1 kg (22nd percentile), and head circumference is 40.6 cm (15th percentile). He has minimally reactive and dilated pupils, with consistent downward gaze and disconjugate ocular movements. Anterior fontanelle is soft and flat. He has prominent upper airway sounds. A nasal catheter cannot be passed through the right nare. Lungs are …