Presenting Signs and Symptoms of Pericardial Effusions in the Pediatric Emergency Department.

OBJECTIVES: The primary objective of this study was to describe the frequency of the most common presenting signs and symptoms of pericardial effusions, particularly with relation to the size of the effusion. The secondary objective was to review the final etiology of the pericardial effusion in those patients who had presented to a tertiary care pediatric emergency department. METHODS: This was a retrospective chart review of patients younger than 17 years who presented and were evaluated at the pediatric emergency department and subsequently diagnosed with a pericardial effusion during a period of 10 years. RESULTS: A total of 23 patients matched the inclusion criteria. The most common symptom was shortness of breath (65%), followed by fever (52%), fatigue (44%), and chest pain (44%). Shortness of breath (60%) and chest pain (60%) were the most frequent symptoms among patients with a small pericardial effusion. Fever (86%), cough (71%), and shortness of breath (71%) were the most frequent symptoms among patients with moderate pericardial effusion. In patients with large pericardial effusions, the most frequent symptoms were shortness of breath (63%) and abdominal pain (63%). Tachycardia (52%) and tachypnea (52%) were the most common abnormal vital signs. The most common etiology was cardiac (44%) and autoimmune disease (26%). CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that the presence of certain symptoms should be associated with a high index of suspicion for pericardial effusion for the pediatric emergency care physician.

Observational review of paediatric intraosseous needle placement in the paediatric emergency department.

AIM: Intraosseous (IO) access is a life-saving option during resuscitations in the paediatric emergency department (PED). This study aimed to compare success rates and time to placement for Manual IO versus EZ-IO needles in PED patients ≤8 and >8 kg. METHODS: This was a retrospective cross-sectional descriptive study of IO use in a single-centre tertiary PED from 2006 to 2014. Cases were identified through diagnosis codes for IO infusion, cardiopulmonary resuscitation and cardiac arrest and admissions to the intensive care unit. Categorical measures were compared with Z-test for comparison of two proportions and continuous with Student's t-tests. RESULTS: Of 1748 charts screened, 50 had an IO attempted. In patients ≤8 kg, Manual IO had success rate of 55% (17/31) versus 47% (8/17) for EZ-IO (P = 0.61). In patients >8 kg, Manual had success rate of 100% (2/2) versus 93% (14/15) for EZ-IO (P = 0.71). Manual performance was no different for ≤8 kg than >8 kg (P = 0.21), but EZ-IO was less successful for ≤8 kg than >8 kg (P = 0.005). In patients ≤8 kg, Manual IO had a shorter time to placement at 4.5 min versus 12.8 for EZ-IO (P = 0.02). CONCLUSION: We observed no difference in performance between Manual and EZ-IO devices in children ≤8 kg, but the Manual IO were placed more quickly. We observed lower success rates with EZ-IO devices in children ≤8 kg compared to >8 kg. Future investigations should focus specifically on training for IO placement in children ≤8 kg.

Infant botulism and indications for administration of botulism immune globulin.

Infant botulism is caused by the ingestion of Clostridium botulinum spores and leads to a life-threatening descending motor weakness and flaccid paralysis in infant children. This disease presents with symptoms such as constipation, weakness, and hypotonia and can lead to respiratory failure. Botulism immune globulin (BIG) was created to treat this deadly disease and functions by neutralizing all systemically circulating botulism toxins. It is indicated in children with clinically diagnosed infant botulism, before diagnostic confirmation, and has been shown to lead to a significant reduction in intensive care unit and hospital stay for these patients. This review article discusses the epidemiology, clinical presentation, history of BIG, and indications for administration of BIG.

A Novel Risk Score to Guide the Evaluation of Acute Hematogenous Osteomyelitis in Children.

OBJECTIVES: To identify independent predictors of and derive a risk score for acute hematogenous osteomyelitis (AHO) in children. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective matched case-control study of children >90 days to <18 years of age undergoing evaluation for a suspected musculoskeletal (MSK) infection from 2017 to 2019 at 23 pediatric emergency departments (EDs) affiliated with the Pediatric Emergency Medicine Collaborative Research Committee. Cases were identified by diagnosis codes and confirmed by chart review to meet accepted diagnostic criteria for AHO. Controls included patients who underwent laboratory and imaging tests to evaluate for a suspected MSK infection and received an alternate final diagnosis. RESULTS: We identified 1135 cases of AHO matched to 2270 controls. Multivariable logistic regression identified 10 clinical and laboratory factors independently associated with AHO. We derived a 4-point risk score for AHO using (1) duration of illness >3 days, (2) history of fever or highest ED temperature ≥38°C, (3) C-reactive protein >2.0 mg/dL, and (4) erythrocyte sedimentation rate >25 mm per hour (area under the curve: 0.892, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.881 to 0.901). Choosing to pursue definitive diagnostics for AHO when 3 or more factors are present maximizes diagnostic accuracy at 84% (95% CI: 82% to 85%), whereas children with 0 factors present are highly unlikely to have AHO (sensitivity: 0.99, 95% CI: 0.98 to 1.00). CONCLUSIONS: We identified 10 predictors for AHO in children undergoing evaluation for a suspected MSK infection in the pediatric ED and derived a novel 4-point risk score to guide clinical decision-making.