Paul L. Aronson

Impact of Family Presence During Pediatric Intensive Care Unit Rounds on the Family and Medical Team

OBJECTIVES: Our objectives were to determine the impact of family presence during PICU rounds on family satisfaction, resident teaching, and length of rounds and to assess factors associated with family satisfaction. METHODS: This was an observational study of a convenience sample of morning work rounds in a PICU, followed by surveys of family members of patients in the unit and residents who had been present for rounds. RESULTS: A total of 411 patient encounters were observed, 98 family questionnaires were fully completed, and 33 resident questionnaires were completed. Ninety-eight percent of family members liked to be present for rounds. On the first day of admission, family members were less likely to understand the plan (P = .03), to feel comfortable asking questions (P = .007), or to want bad news during rounds (P = .009). They were more likely to have privacy concerns (P = .02) and to want 1 individual to convey the plan after rounds (P = .01). Higher education level was associated with decreased privacy concerns (P = .002) but did not affect understanding of the plan. Fifty-two percent of residents perceived that teaching was decreased with families present. Time spent with individual patients was not increased by family member presence (P = .12). CONCLUSIONS: Family satisfaction is high, but families of patients on the first day of admission may need special attention. The medical team should conduct rounds in a manner that addresses the privacy concerns of families. Residents often think that teaching is decreased when families are present.

Variation in Care of the Febrile Young Infant <90 Days in US Pediatric Emergency Departments

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Variation in patient care or outcomes may indicate an opportunity to improve quality of care. We evaluated the variation in testing, treatment, hospitalization rates, and outcomes of febrile young infants in US pediatric emergency departments (EDs). METHODS: Retrospective cohort study of infants <90 days of age with a diagnosis code of fever who were evaluated in 1 of 37 pediatric EDs between July 1, 2011 and June 30, 2013. We assessed patient- and hospital-level variation in testing, treatment, and disposition for patients in 3 distinct age groups: ≤28, 29 to 56, and 57 to 89 days. We also compared interhospital variation for 3-day revisits and revisits resulting in hospitalization. RESULTS: We identified 35 070 ED visits that met inclusion criteria. The proportion of patients who underwent comprehensive evaluation, defined as urine, serum, and cerebrospinal fluid testing, decreased with increasing patient age: 72.0% (95% confidence interval [CI], 71.0–73.0) of neonates ≤28 days, 49.0% (95% CI, 48.2–49.8) of infants 29 to 56 days, and 13.1% (95% CI, 12.5–13.6) of infants 57 to 89 days. Significant interhospital variation was demonstrated in testing, treatment, and hospitalization rates overall and across all 3 age groups, with little interhospital variation in outcomes. Hospitalization rate in the overall cohort did not correlate with 3-day revisits (R2 = 0.10, P = .06) or revisits resulting in hospitalization (R2 = 0.08, P = .09). CONCLUSIONS: Substantial patient- and hospital-level variation was observed in the ED management of the febrile young infant, without concomitant differences in outcomes. Strategies to understand and address the modifiable sources of variation are needed.

Delayed Acyclovir Therapy and Death Among Neonates With Herpes Simplex Virus Infection

OBJECTIVE: To determine the association of delayed acyclovir therapy with death among neonates with herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection. METHODS: A multicenter, retrospective, cohort study was conducted between January 1, 2003, and December 31, 2009, with 1086 neonates (age: ≤28 days) with HSV infection from 41 tertiary care childrens hospitals. Early acyclovir therapy was defined as initiation of intravenous acyclovir treatment within 1 day after hospital admission, and delayed acyclovir therapy was defined as initiation of treatment >1 and ≤7 days after hospital admission. Multivariate logistic regression models determined the association between delayed acyclovir therapy and death, with the use of propensity scores for each neonates likelihood of receiving delayed acyclovir treatment to control for differences in illness severity between groups. RESULTS: The median age was 10 days. Delayed acyclovir therapy was administered to 262 neonates (24.1%). In most cases (86.2%) of delayed receipt, acyclovir administration occurred on the second or third day of hospitalization. The overall mortality rate was 7.3% (95% confidence interval: 5.8%–9.0%); 9.5% of those who received delayed acyclovir treatment and 6.6% of those who received early acyclovir treatment died. In a multivariate analysis, delayed acyclovir therapy was associated with significantly greater odds of death (adjusted odds ratio: 2.63 [95% confidence interval: 1.36–5.08]) compared with early acyclovir therapy. CONCLUSIONS: In this multicenter observational study of neonates with HSV infection, delayed initiation of acyclovir therapy was associated with in-hospital death. Our data support the use of empiric acyclovir therapy for neonates undergoing testing for HSV infection.

Characteristics of Recurrent Utilization in Pediatric Emergency Departments

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Nationally, frequent utilizers of emergency departments (EDs) are targeted for quality improvement initiatives. The objective was to compare the characteristics and ED health services of children by their ED visit frequency. METHODS: A retrospective study in 1 896 547 children aged 0 to 18 years with 3 263 330 visits to 37 EDs in 2011. The number of ED visits per child within 365 days of their first visit was counted. Patient characteristics (age, chronic condition) and ED care (medications, testing [laboratory and radiographic], and hospital admission) were assessed. We evaluated the relationship between patient characteristics and ED health services received with multivariable regression. RESULTS: Children with ≥4 ED visits (8%) accounted for 24% of all visits and 31% (

Delayed acyclovir and outcomes of children hospitalized with eczema herpeticum.

1.4 billion) of all costs. As visit frequency increased from 1 to ≥4, the percentage of children aged <1 year increased (12.1% to 33.2%) and the percentage of children without a chronic condition decreased (81.9% to 45.6%) (P < .001 for both). Children with ≥4 ED visits had a higher percentage of visits without medication administration (aside from acetaminophen or ibuprofen), testing, or hospital admission when compared with children with 1 visit (35.4% vs 29.0%; P < .001). Children with ≥4 ED visits who were aged <1 year (odds ratio: 3.8; 95% confidence interval: 3.7–3.9) and who were without a chronic condition (odds ratio: 3.1; 95% confidence interval: 3.0–3.1) had the highest likelihood of experiencing this type of visit. CONCLUSIONS: With a disproportionate share of pediatric ED cost and utilization, frequent utilizers, especially infants without a chronic condition, are the least likely to need medications, testing, and hospital admission.

Impact of Increasing Ondansetron Use on Clinical Outcomes in Children With Gastroenteritis

OBJECTIVE: To describe the epidemiology and outcomes of children hospitalized with eczema herpeticum and to determine the association with delayed acyclovir on outcomes. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This was a multicenter retrospective cohort study conducted between January 1, 2001, and March 31, 2010, of 1331 children aged 2 months to 17 years with eczema herpeticum from 42 tertiary care childrens hospitals in the Pediatric Health Information System database. Multivariable linear regression models determined the association between delayed acyclovir therapy and the main outcome measure: hospital length of stay (LOS). RESULTS: There were no deaths during the study period. Staphylococcus aureus infection was diagnosed in 30.3% of the patients; 3.9% of the patients had a bloodstream infection. Fifty-one patients (3.8%) required ICU admission. There were 893 patients (67.1%) who received acyclovir on the first day of admission. The median LOS increased with each day delay in acyclovir initiation. In multivariable analysis, delay of acyclovir initiation by 1 day was associated with an 11% increased LOS (95% confidence interval [CI]: 3%–20%; P = .008), and LOS increased by 41% when acyclovir was started on day 3 (95% CI: 19%–67%; P < .001) and by 98% when started on day 4 to 7 (95% CI: 60%–145%; P < .001). Use of topical corticosteroids on day 1 of hospitalization was not associated with LOS. CONCLUSIONS: Delay of acyclovir initiation is associated with increased LOS in hospitalized children with eczema herpeticum. Use of topical corticosteroids on admission is not associated with increased LOS. The mortality rate of hospitalized children with eczema herpeticum is low.

Association of clinical practice guidelines with emergency department management of febrile infants ≤56 days of age

IMPORTANCE Ondansetron hydrochloride use in children with gastroenteritis is increasing rapidly; however, little is known about its impact on outcomes. OBJECTIVE To determine whether increasing emergency department ondansetron use has resulted in a reduction in intravenous rehydration rates. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Retrospective observational analysis of eligible visits included in the Pediatric Health Information System administrative database. Eligible institutions included 18 emergency departments geographically distributed across the United States, and participants included 804,000 patients aged 0 to 18 years who were diagnosed as having gastroenteritis in an emergency department at an eligible participating institution between January 1, 2002, and December 31, 2011. INTERVENTIONS The presence or absence of oral ondansetron administration was identified for each patient through database review. Visits were categorized based on institutional ondansetron use: low (<5% administered ondansetron), medium (5%-25%), or high (>25%). MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES We conducted hospital-level analyses of the associations between ondansetron use and 3 outcomes: intravenous rehydration (primary), hospitalization, and emergency department revisits within 3 days. Time-series regression models were used, adjusting for demographic characteristics, laboratory testing, diagnostic imaging, and rotavirus infection. RESULTS A total of 804,000 eligible patient visits were identified. Oral ondansetron use increased from a median institutional rate of 0.11% (interquartile range, 0.04%-0.44%) of patient visits in 2002 to 42.2% (interquartile range, 37.5%-49.1%) in 2011 (P < .001). Intravenous rehydration was administered to 43,413 of 232,706 children (18.7%) during the low ondansetron period compared with 59,450 of 334,264 (17.8%) during the high ondansetron period (adjusted percentage change = -0.33%; 95% CI, -1.86% to 1.20%). During the transition from low to high ondansetron use, we observed no change in the hospitalization rate (adjusted percentage change = -0.33%; 95% CI, -0.95% to 0.29%), but emergency department revisits decreased (adjusted percentage change = -0.31%; 95% CI, -0.49% to -0.13%). The change in all 3 outcomes varied widely between low and high ondansetron use categories at an institutional level. Oral ondansetron was provided to 13.5% (95% CI, 13.3% to 13.7%) of children administered intravenous rehydration. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE Although ondansetron use increased during the study period, intravenous rehydration rates were unchanged. Most children administered intravenous fluids did not receive oral ondansetron. Our findings highlight the need to focus efforts to administer ondansetron to children at greatest risk for oral rehydration failure.

Are family characteristics associated with attendance at family centered rounds in the PICU

BACKGROUND Differences among febrile infant institutional clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) may contribute to practice variation and increased healthcare costs. OBJECTIVE Determine the association between pediatric emergency department (ED) CPGs and laboratory testing, hospitalization, ceftriaxone use, and costs in febrile infants. DESIGN Retrospective cross-sectional study in 2013. SETTING Thirty-three hospitals in the Pediatric Health Information System. PATIENTS Infants aged ≤56 days with a diagnosis of fever. EXPOSURES The presence and content of ED-based febrile infant CPGs assessed by electronic survey. MEASUREMENTS Using generalized estimating equations, we evaluated the association between CPG recommendations and rates of urine, blood, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) testing, hospitalization, and ceftriaxone use at ED discharge in 2 age groups: ≤28 days and 29 to 56 days. We also assessed CPG impact on healthcare costs. RESULTS We included 9377 ED visits; 21 of 33 EDs (63.6%) had a CPG. For neonates ≤28 days, CPG recommendations did not vary and were not associated with differences in testing, hospitalization, or costs. Among infants 29 to 56 days, CPG recommendations for CSF testing and ceftriaxone use varied. CSF testing occurred less often at EDs with CPGs recommending limited testing compared to hospitals without CPGs (adjusted odds ratio: 0.5, 95% confidence interval: 0.3-0.8). Ceftriaxone use at ED discharge varied significantly based on CPG recommendations. Costs were higher for admitted and discharged infants 29 to 56 days old at hospitals with CPGs. CONCLUSIONS CPG recommendations for febrile infants 29 to 56 days old vary across institutions for CSF testing and ceftriaxone use, correlating with observed practice variation. CPGs were not associated with lower healthcare costs.

Interpretation of Cerebrospinal Fluid White Blood Cell Counts in Young Infants With a Traumatic Lumbar Puncture

Objective: The objective of this study was to identify if family characteristics or opinions affected participation in family centered rounds. Design: Observational study of 431 patient encounters on daily work rounds, followed by 100 questionnaires completed by family members of patients in the unit during observation. Setting: PICU at a tertiary care, academic, free-standing children’s hospital. Subjects: Patients and families admitted to the PICU during the observation period. Intervention: None. Measurements and Main Results: The most frequent family members present for rounds were mothers (40%). Race, educational level, age of the family member, age of the child, whether the admission was expected, and whether the family member was a medical professional had no association with whether the family member attended rounds. Both family members who were present and those who were not present felt being at rounds would improve the care of their child (87% vs. 100%, p = 0.57). A family’s response that they preferred to attend rounds was the only factor associated with a higher likelihood of attending rounds (odds ratio 3.4, 95% confidence interval 1.1–10.8, p = 0.03). Conclusion: Families feel that participating in family centered rounds improves the care of their children. Those that like attending rounds are more likely to participate in family centered rounds, but family demographic characteristics were not associated with rounds attendance. Future studies are needed to identify barriers to family participation in family centered rounds.

Intra-articular lidocaine for reduction of shoulder dislocation.

Study objective We determine the optimal correction factor for cerebrospinal fluid WBC counts in infants with traumatic lumbar punctures. Methods We performed a secondary analysis of a retrospective cohort of infants aged 60 days or younger and with a traumatic lumbar puncture (cerebrospinal fluid RBC count ≥10,000 cells/mm3) at 20 participating centers. Cerebrospinal fluid pleocytosis was defined as a cerebrospinal fluid WBC count greater than or equal to 20 cells/mm3 for infants aged 28 days or younger and greater than or equal to 10 cells/mm3 for infants aged 29 to 60 days; bacterial meningitis was defined as growth of pathogenic bacteria from cerebrospinal fluid culture. Using linear regression, we derived a cerebrospinal fluid WBC correction factor and compared the uncorrected with the corrected cerebrospinal fluid WBC count for the detection of bacterial meningitis. Results Of the eligible 20,319 lumbar punctures, 2,880 (14%) were traumatic, and 33 of these patients (1.1%) had bacterial meningitis. The derived cerebrospinal fluid RBCs:WBCs ratio was 877:1 (95% confidence interval [CI] 805 to 961:1). Compared with the uncorrected cerebrospinal fluid WBC count, the corrected one had lower sensitivity for bacterial meningitis (88% uncorrected versus 67% corrected; difference 21%; 95% CI 10% to 37%) but resulted in fewer infants with cerebrospinal fluid pleocytosis (78% uncorrected versus 33% corrected; difference 45%; 95% CI 43% to 47%). Cerebrospinal fluid WBC count correction resulted in the misclassification of 7 additional infants with bacterial meningitis, who were misclassified as not having cerebrospinal fluid pleocytosis; only 1 of these infants was older than 28 days. Conclusion Correction of the cerebrospinal fluid WBC count substantially reduced the number of infants with cerebrospinal fluid pleocytosis while misclassifying only 1 infant with bacterial meningitis of those aged 29 to 60 days.