• Philip Coote, Margaret Wall, and Michael M Dinh.
• From the *Department of Paediatrics, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital; †Newborn and Paediatric Emergency Transport Service, and ‡Emergency Department, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, New South Wales, Australia.
• Pediatr Emerg Care. 2013 Nov 1;29(11):1166-9.

ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to compare medical and paramedic retrieval of children requiring interhospital transport with suspected or confirmed intussusception.MethodsCases of confirmed or suspected intussusception referred to the New South Wales Newborn and Paediatric Emergency Transport Service from January 2001 to August 2011 were identified retrospectively using the Newborn and Paediatric Emergency Transport Service database. Univariate analyses were used to compare patients transported by medical and paramedic escort teams, and multivariable logistic regression was used to determine independent predictors of the decision to use medical escort teams.ResultsTwo hundred twenty-two cases were identified over the 10-year period. Paramedic escort teams were used in 48% of cases. There were no major complications recorded during retrieval by medical and paramedic escort teams. Only the presence of blood-stained stools (odds ratio, 1.9; 95% confidence interval, 0.93-3.86; P = 0.08) and increasing heart rate (odds ratio, 1.03; 95% confidence interval, 1.01-1.04; P = 0.002) were found to be predictors of the decision to use a medical escort retrieval team. No factors were found to be associated with increased medical intervention in the subgroup of patients transported by a medical escort team.ConclusionsWell children requiring interhospital transport for suspected or confirmed intussusception can be transported safely without a medical escort team if they have normal heart rates.

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