Clinical pediatrics
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Clinical pediatrics · May 2014
Emergency medicine physicians' and pediatricians' use of computed tomography in the evaluation of pediatric patients with abdominal pain without trauma in a community hospital.
There is a paucity of data regarding emergency department (ED) provider type and computed tomography (CT) scan use in the evaluation of pediatric patients with abdominal pain without trauma. The purpose of this retrospective single community hospital study was to determine if there was a difference in CT use between emergency medicine physicians (EMPs) and pediatricians (PEDs) in all patients younger than 18 years with abdominal pain without trauma who presented to the ED during the study period. ⋯ EMPs used CT significantly more frequently than PEDs in the designated sample. Economic pressures may cause changes in ED provider type in community and rural hospitals and this study shows that ED provider type may affect medical decision making, including CT use.
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Clinical pediatrics · Mar 2014
Randomized Controlled TrialAddressing dental fear in children with autism spectrum disorders: a randomized controlled pilot study using electronic screen media.
Dental care is a significant unmet health care need for children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Many children with ASD do not receive dental care because of fear associated with dental procedures; oftentimes they require general anesthesia for regular dental procedures, placing them at risk of associated complications. Many children with ASD have a strong preference for visual stimuli, particularly electronic screen media. The use of visual teaching materials is a fundamental principle in designing educational programs for children with ASD. ⋯ These findings suggest that certain electronic screen media technologies may be useful tools for reducing fear and uncooperative behaviors among children with ASD undergoing dental visits. Further studies are needed to assess the efficacy of these strategies using larger sample sizes. Findings from future studies could be relevant for nondental providers who care for children with ASD in other medical settings.
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Clinical pediatrics · Mar 2014
Observational StudyAmbulance transport of noncritical children: emergency medical service providers' knowledge, opinions, and practice.
Safe ambulance transport of children presents unique challenges. Our study describes child passenger restraint practices during ambulance transport, Emergency Medical Service (EMS) providers' knowledge, training, and use of child passenger restraint devices (CRD). ⋯ Study findings supports education and training of EMS personnel to improve the safe ambulance transport of children.
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Clinical pediatrics · Feb 2014
Smooth implementation of critical congenital heart defect screening in a newborn nursery.
In January of 2012, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences began implementation of a critical congenital heart disease screening program to identify newborns with structural heart defects. The screening used motion tolerant pulse oximeters in direct sequence to measure the oxygen levels in the right hand and either foot of eligible newborns. Exclusion criteria included echocardiogram prior to discharge, age greater than 7 days with continuous neonatal intensive care unit monitoring, or death or transfer prior to discharge. ⋯ Two of the infants had atrial septal defects, and 1 had a patent foramen ovale, which was considered a false positive. After planning and education, the implementation of critical congenital heart disease pulse oximetry screening was successful. With only 1 false positive in our high-risk population, this should encourage other institutions to begin screening eligible infants.