Tracheobronchial rupture in children due to chest compression.

A tracheobronchial rupture can be lethal. Its etiology in children varies and includes blunt trauma and iatrogenic injury. Most of the latter are associated with tracheal intubation, with other, iatrogenic causes scarcely being reported. We herein reported the first case of tracheobronchial rupture caused by chest compression during cardiopulmonary resuscitation. The present case highlights the importance of close follow-up after cardiopulmonary resuscitation, even if the patients are not intubated.

Risk stratification of extravasation during semi-automatic intraosseous device use in a pediatric emergency setting.

BACKGROUND: The semi-automatic intraosseous device (EZ-IO®) is useful for safely securing intraosseous access. There are some complications associated with its use but few studies have examined the risk factors. The present study aimed to investigate the risk factors for extravasation as a complication of EZ-IO use in pediatric patients. METHODS: This study is a secondary analysis of a previous, monocentric, retrospective study conducted in Japan describing the use of EZ-IO in a pediatric emergency department. The patients included in the study were younger than 16 years of age with EZ-IO use at the Tokyo Metropolitan Children's Medical Center between January, 2013 and August, 2018. The factors analyzed included demographic information (sex, age, weight), Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), diagnosis, bolus infusion, and lidocaine use. The primary endpoint was the odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for extravasation incidence. RESULTS: Seventy-two patients were enrolled; 14 of these had extravasation, 39 (54.2%) had a diagnosis of cardiac arrest, and 50 (69.4%) had a GCS score of 8 or less. Statistical analysis demonstrated that the group with a high GCS score was significantly associated with extravasation: GCS (<13) versus GCS (13≦) (OR: 12.25; 95% CI: 2.54-59.15; p < 0.01), GCS (<8) versus GCS (8≦) (OR: 4.78; 95% CI: 1.34-17.01; p = 0.03). CONCLUSIONS: A high GCS score was associated with extravasation in EZ-IO use significantly more often than a low GCS score. No significant difference was found in the other endpoints.

Enzymatic Conjugation of Modified RNA Fragments by Ancestral RNA Ligase AncT4_2.

Oligonucleotide therapeutics have great potential as a next-generation approach to treating intractable diseases. Large quantities of modified DNA/RNA containing xenobiotic nucleic acids (XNAs) must be synthesized before clinical application. In this study, the ancestral RNA ligase AncT4_2 was designed by ancestral sequence reconstruction (ASR) to perform the conjugation reaction of modified RNA fragments. AncT4_2 had superior properties to native RNA ligase 2 from T4 phage (T4Rnl2), including high productivity, a >2.5-fold-higher turnover number, and >10°C higher thermostability. One remarkable point is the broad substrate selectivity of AncT4_2; the activity of AncT4_2 toward 17 of the modified RNA fragments was higher than that of T4Rnl2. The activity was estimated by measuring the conjugation reaction of two RNA strands, 3'-OH (12 bp) and 5'-PO4 (12 bp), in which the terminal and penultimate positions of the 3'-OH fragment and the first and second positions of the 5'-PO4 fragment were substituted by 2'-fluoro, 2'-O-methyl, 2'-O-methoxyethyl, and 2'-H, respectively. The enzymatic properties of AncT4_2 allowed the enzyme to conjugate large quantities of double-stranded RNA coding for patisiran (>400 µM level), which was formed by four RNA fragments containing 2'-OMe-substituted nucleic acids. Structural analysis of modeled AncT4_2 suggested that protein dynamics were changed by mutation to Gly or indel during ASR and that this may positively impact the conjugation of modified RNA fragments with the enzyme. AncT4_2 is expected to be a key biocatalyst in synthesizing RNA therapeutics by an enzymatic reaction. IMPORTANCE RNA therapeutics is one of the next-generation medicines for treating various diseases. Our designed ancestral RNA ligase AncT4_2 exhibited excellent enzymatic properties, such as high thermal stability, productivity, specific activity, and broad substrate selectivity compared to native enzymes. These advantages create the potential for AncT4_2 to be applied in conjugating the modified RNA fragments containing various xenobiotic nucleic acids. In addition, patisiran, a known polyneuropathy therapeutic, could be synthesized from four fragmented oligonucleotides at a preparative scale. Taken together, these findings indicate AncT4_2 could open the door to synthesizing RNA therapeutics by enzymatic reaction at large-scale production.

Characterization of a xylanase belonging to the glycoside hydrolase family 5 subfamily 35 from Paenibacillus sp. H2C.

Corn xylan is resistant to enzymatic hydrolysis due to its complex structure. We characterized PsXyn5A, an enzyme highly active for corn xylan, isolated from Paenibacillus sp. H2C. PsXyn5A is a modular xylanase with a catalytic domain belonging to the glycoside hydrolase family 5 subfamily 35 (GH5_35) and a carbohydrate-binding module family 13 (CBM13) domain. The substrate recognition mechanism of GH5_35 xylanase has not been reported. Analysis of the hydrolysate from rye arabinoxylan (RAX) has shown that the GH5_35 catalytic domain of PsXyn5A recognizes an arabinofuranosyl (Araf) side residue and cleaves the reducing terminal side of Araf-linked xylopyranose. This cleavage specificity is the same as reported for the GH5_34 xylanase from Hungateiclostridium thermocellum (HtXyl5A). Unlike HtXyl5A, PsXyn5A produced Araf-xylopyranose from RAX and did not hydrolyze 33-α-l-Araf-xylotetraose. Deletion of the CBM13 domain significantly decreased the activity toward insoluble corn xylan, indicating that CBM13 plays an essential role in hydrolyzing corn xylan.

Effects of the new fasting standard on sedation in the pediatric emergency room.

BACKGROUND: This study compared adherence to the fasting-time guidelines of the International Committee for the Advancement of Procedural Sedation (ICAPS) and the North American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) and complication rates in pediatric patients requiring procedure sedation and analgesia during treatment in the emergency room (ER). METHODS: This retrospective, single-center study was performed between 2016 and 2020, and enrolled patients who received procedural sedation and analgesia in the ER with the fasting times recommended in the ICAPS and ASA guidelines. RESULTS: In total, 857 patients were included. The most frequent indication for procedural sedation and analgesia was fracture reduction in 420 patients (49.0%). Ketamine, the most commonly administered drug, was given to 710 patients (82.8%). Adherence to the ICAPS guidelines was higher (P < 0.01), with 772 (95.7%) and 351 (41.0%) patients, respectively, adhering to the ICAPS and ASA recommendations for food and drink fasting times. Complications occurred in 130 patients (15.2%), including SpO2 <90% in 75 patients (8.7%) and vomiting in 20 patients (2.3%). No serious complications, such as aspiration, cardiac arrest, or death, occurred. The complication rate between the two groups did not differ significantly, with 50 (14.2%) and 127 (15.5%) patients experiencing complications according to the ICAPS and ASA guidelines, respectively (P = 0.586). CONCLUSIONS: The fasting recommendations of the ICAPS guidelines, which propose risk stratification to determine the appropriate fasting time for procedural sedation and analgesia, are more tolerable to patients and the rate of adverse events did not appear to be different from that experienced when following the ASA guidelines.

Pediatric emergency healthcare utilization during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic in Tokyo.

BACKGROUND: Various public health interventions have been implemented against the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. We investigated changes in pediatric emergency healthcare utilization during the current pandemic. METHODS: Based on data on outpatient healthcare visits to one pediatric emergency department in Tokyo, Japan, the descriptive, cross-sectional study compared the number of emergency department visits in 2020 to the number in the previous 3 years. Data were extracted from the electronic triage reporting system. The primary outcome was the number of emergency department visits. The characteristics of patients by age group were also investigated. RESULTS: A 40.6% reduction in pediatric emergency healthcare utilization was observed during the study period, with the greatest decrease occurring in the number of visits for fever. However, while the number of patients with a complaint with an exogenous cause decreased, the proportion of these patients increased. Although social activities in the greater community have now almost normalized, and only a slight increase in the number of patients with fever has been reported, the number of emergency department visits remains lower than in previous years as of this writing. CONCLUSIONS: Public health interventions led to a reduction in emergency department visits, thereby allowing time to redistribute health-care resources.

Relationship Between Body Temperature and Heart Rate in Children With No Other Apparent Cause of Tachycardia.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to investigate the normal heart rate range for each body temperature in patients visiting the emergency department (ED) with no other, apparent, coexisting factors causing tachycardia. METHODS: This was an observational study conducted in the ED at a single children's hospital between April 1, 2014, and March 31, 2017. Data on all visits were extracted from the electronic triage system and were excluded if they indicated the presence of factors other than body temperature potentially increasing the heart rate. We created age-dependent heart rate percentile curves for body temperature in 6 age categories: 0 to younger than 3 months, 3 to younger than 12 months, 1 to younger than 2 years, 2 to younger than 5 years, 5 to younger than 10 years, and 10 years or older. The curves were created for the body temperatures of 36.0°C to 38.0°C for the 0 to younger than 3 months age group and for body temperatures of 36.0°C to 40.5°C for the other age groups. RESULTS: Of the 113,242 patients included, 61,321 were analyzed. The percentile curves across all age groups were similar despite differences in the baseline heart rate. Heart rate increase was steepest between 37.0°C and 38.0°C at a rate of approximately 20 beats per minute per degree Celsius for all groups. Compared with previous studies in the outpatient setting, including the ED, heart rate was lower in younger patients and was similar among older patients. CONCLUSIONS: We created new, age-dependent heart rate percentile curves for body temperature for use in the ED setting. In outpatients, the effect of coexisting factors affecting heart rate, such as crying, may be higher among younger patients.

Association Between Repeated Tracheal Intubation Attempts and Adverse Events in Children in the Emergency Department.

STUDY OBJECTIVES: Studies have shown that multiple intubation attempts are associated with a higher risk of intubation-related adverse events. However, little is known about the relationship in children in the emergency department (ED). METHODS: This is an analysis of the data from 2 prospective, observational, multicenter registries of emergency airway management. The data were collected from consecutive patients who underwent emergency airway management in 19 EDs across Japan from March 2010 to November 2017. We included children 18 years or younger who underwent tracheal intubation in the ED. The primary exposure was the number of intubation attempts (1 vs ≥2). The primary outcome was an adverse event during or immediately after the intubation. RESULTS: A total of 439 children were eligible for the analysis. Of 279 children with first-pass success, 24 children (9%) had an adverse event. By contrast, of 160 children with ≥2 intubation attempts, 50 children patients (31%) had an adverse event. In the unadjusted model, multiple intubation attempts were significantly associated with a higher rate of adverse events (unadjusted odds ratio, 4.83; 95% confidence interval, 2.57-9.06; P < 0.001). This association remained significant after adjusting for 7 potential confounders and patient clustering within the hospital (adjusted odds ratio, 4.49; 95% confidence interval, 2.36-8.53; P < 0.001). Similar associations were found across different age groups and among children without cardiac arrest (all, P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: In this analysis of large prospective multicenter data, multiple intubation attempts were associated with a significantly higher rate of intubation-related adverse events in children in the ED.

Association of advanced age with intubation-related adverse events in the emergency department: a multicentre prospective observational study.

BACKGROUND: While the older population accounts for an increasing proportion of emergency department (ED), little is known about intubation-related adverse events in this high-risk population. We sought to determine whether advanced age is associated with a higher risk of intubation-related adverse events in the ED. METHODS: This is an analysis of data from a prospective, 15-centre, observational study-the second Japanese Emergency Airway Network (JEAN-2) study. The current analysis included adult (aged ≥18 years) patients who underwent intubation in the ED between 2012 and 2018. The primary exposure was age (18-39, 40-64, 65-74, 75-84 and ≥85 years). The primary outcome was overall intubation-related adverse events during or immediately after an intubation. Adverse events were further categorised into major (hypotension, hypoxaemia, oesophageal intubation, cardiac arrest, dysrhythmia and death) and minor (endobronchial intubation, oesophageal intubation with early recognition, dental/lip trauma, airway trauma and regurgitation) adverse events. We constructed multivariable logistic regression models adjusting for seven potential confounders with generalised estimating equations that account for patients clustering within the ED. RESULTS: Among 9714 patients eligible for the analysis, 15% were aged ≥85 years, and 16% had adverse events. In the unadjusted models, advanced age was not significantly associated with the risk of overall adverse events. In the adjusted models, the association was significant (adjusted OR 1.41 in age ≥85 years (95% CI, 1.09 to 1.81) compared with age 18-39 years). Specifically, older patients had a significantly higher risk of major adverse events (adjusted OR in age ≥85 years 2.65 (95% CI, 1.78 to 3.94)), which was driven by the association of advanced age with an increased risk of hypotension (adjusted OR in ≥85 years, 5.69 (95% CI, 3.13 to 10.37)). By contrast, advanced age was not associated with minor adverse events. CONCLUSION: Based on the data from a prospective multicentre study, advanced age was associated with higher risks of major adverse events.

The Management of Pediatric Genital Injuries at a Pediatric Emergency Department in Japan.

OBJECTIVES: Genital injuries among children are often associated with consumer products or specific activities. There are few descriptive studies from Asia on pediatric genital injuries seen in the emergency department (ED). The aim of this study was to describe the characteristic features of accidental genital injuries among children. METHODS: A retrospective chart review of children aged 15 years or younger who visited our ED for genital injuries between March 2010 and November 2014 was conducted. Data on age, arrival time at the ED, location of the incident, mechanism of injury, objects, injured organ, consultation with specialists, emergency operation, sedation at the ED, and outcomes were collected and analyzed. RESULTS: One hundred seventy-nine patients were included in this analysis. Girls comprised 71% of the subject pool. The median age was 6 years (interquartile range, 4-9 years). Straddle injuries were the most common form of injury (56%). Male genital injuries occurred mostly outdoors (64%). Common consumer products associated with pediatric genital injuries were furniture (21%), exercise equipment (17%), and bicycles (15%). Thirty-two patients were examined by a surgeon, gynecologist, or urologist. The most commonly injured organs were the penis (55%) in boys and the labia (60%) in girls. Most patients (93%) were treated at the ED and discharged. CONCLUSIONS: The characteristics of accidental genital injuries among Japanese children were similar to those of children in other countries. The strategy for preventing genital injuries used in the West might be applicable to the East Asian context.

Ultrasound-guided nasogastric tube placement in a pediatric emergency department.

Nasogastric tube (NGT) insertion is commonly performed in pediatric emergency care. Point-of-care ultrasound is used for confirming NGT insertion, but reports of its use in the pediatric emergency department (ED) are scarce. We describe our experience of ultrasound-guided NGT placement in a pediatric ED. The study pool consisted of twelve patients and the NGT tip was successfully visualized in the esophagus and gastric cardia in all cases, demonstrating that ultrasound has the potential to be a useful alternative to conventional methods of NGT insertion in the pediatric ED.

[A Case of Two Stage taTME for Perforated Rectal Cancer during Chemotherapy].

The patient was a 57-year-old male. He was diagnosed with locally advanced rectal cancer infiltrating the left levator ani muscle. Chemotherapy(S-1 plus L-OHP plus bevacizumab regimen)was started for the purpose of obtaining a negative circumferential radial margin. After the second course, he presented with perforation of the sigmoid colon for which an emergency operation was performed. The perforation was located 5 centimeters above the tumor in the sigmoid colon. We performed partial resection of the sigmoid colon to repair the perforation and create a sigmoid colostomy. CT, after the initial S-1 plus L-OHP plus bevacizumab chemotherapy regimen, revealed tumor shrinkage. Following 2 more courses of chemotherapy( S-1 plus L-OHP regimen), we performed transanal total mesenteric excision(taTME)as curative surgery. R0 resection was achieved. The combined transanal and laparoscopic approach was highly effective for a patient with pan-peritonitis.

[A Case of Descending Colon and Rectal Cancer with Acute Myeloid Leukemia Performed Robot‒Assisted Hartmann's Procedure].

The case is a 68‒year‒old male, who had been diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia(AML)prior to rectal cancer surgery, was referred to our hospital for treatment in July 2019. We planned to treat the AML first, and then the colorectal cancer. After completion of 1 course of CAG therapy(cytarabine, aclarubicin, G‒CSF), his white blood cell count increased sufficiently, so he underwent a robot‒assisted Hartmann operation in October. A second course of CAG therapy was started 15 days postoperatively. However, he was then diagnosed with exacerbation of the AML; remission induction therapy (daunorubicin, cytarabine)was started in November. In December, he developed a fever and abdominal pain, and on CT scan, it was discovered that an abscess had formed around the rectal resection site. Myelosuppression from AML led to prolonged sepsis; and by January 2020, the sepsis was systemic. His actual cause of death was given as circulatory failure. We report this, because only a few cases on the treatment of overlapping AML and colorectal cancers can be found in the literature.

Isolation of four xylanases capable of hydrolyzing corn fiber xylan from Paenibacillus sp. H2C.

Corn fibre xylan (CX) shows high resistance to enzymatic hydrolysis due to its densely decorated side chains. To find enzymes capable of hydrolyzing CX, we isolated a bacterial strain (named H2C) from soil, by enrichment culture using non-starch polysaccharides of corn as the sole carbon source. Analysis based on the 16S rRNA sequence placed strain H2C within genus Paenibacillus. Enzymes were purified from supernatant of culture broth of strain H2C based on solubilizing activities toward CX. Four enzymes, Xyn5A, Xyn10B, Xyn11A, and Xyn30A, were successfully identified, which belong to glycoside hydrolase (GH) families, 5, 10, 11, and 30, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis classified Xyn5A in subfamily 35 of GH family 5, a subfamily of unknown function. Their activities toward beechwood xylan and/or wheat arabinoxylan indicated that these enzymes are ß-1,4-xylanases. They showed high solubilizing activities toward a feed material, corn dried distiller's grains with solubles, compared to five previously characterized xylanases.Abbreviations : CX: corn fibre xylan; DDGS: corn dried distiller's grains with solubles.

Validation of the PECARN head trauma prediction rules in Japan: A multicenter prospective study.

BACKGROUND: Head trauma in children is one of the most common causes for emergency department visits. Although most trauma cases are minor, identifying those patients who have clinically important traumatic brain injury (ciTBI) is challenging. The Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network (PECARN) head trauma prediction rules identifying children who do not require cranial computed tomography (CT) were validated and are used all over the world. However, these rules have not been validated with large cohort multicenter studies in Asia. OBJECTIVES: To investigate whether the PECARN rules can be safely applied to Japanese children. METHODS: We conducted a multicenter, prospective, observational cohort study. We included children younger than 16 with minor head trauma (Glasgow Coma Scale ≥14) who presented to the six participating centers within 24 h of their injuries between June 2016 and September 2017. The primary analysis was set to calculate the negative predictive value of the patients with very low risk by the PECARN rules, compared with a preset threshold of 99.85%. RESULTS: We included 6585 children of which 463 (7.0%) had head CT scans performed and 23 (0.35%) had ciTBI. There were two patients with ciTBI who were classified as very low risk. The negative predictive value, calculated as 99.96% (95%CI: 99.86-100.00; P = .019), was significantly superior compared with the preset threshold of 99.85%. CONCLUSIONS: The PECARN head trauma prediction rules seemed to be safely applicable to Japanese children. Further studies are needed to determine safety in hospitals where physicians do not have expertise in managing children.

Metered-dose inhaler ipratropium bromide for children with acute asthma exacerbation: A prospective, non-randomized, observational study.

BACKGROUND: Ipratropium bromide (IB), when administered with ß2-agonists, is effective in reducing hospital admissions of children presenting to the emergency department (ED) with severe asthma. While IB is commonly delivered in its nebulized form, using a metered-dose inhaler (MDI), can, reportedly, shorten patients' length of stay in the ED. However, the effectiveness and safety of IB administration using an MDI with a spacer have not been established. This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness and safety of MDI-delivered IB in pediatric patients with acute asthma exacerbation. METHODS: This prospective, non-randomized, observational study included patients aged ≥4 years with a history of severe asthma exacerbation. Patients received IB via MDI with a spacer three times at 20-min intervals. IB use was determined by the physicians' treatment policy. Propensity score matching was used to adjust the confounding factors related to IB administration. RESULTS: Of the 158 patients, 88 were treated with IB and 70 were treated without IB. A propensity score-matching analysis extracted 54 patients from each group. We found no statistical difference in the admission rate of the two groups (IB group: 25.9% vs non-IB group: 31.5%; P = 0.67). The post-treatment modified pulmonary index scores (mean ± SD) were also similar (IB: 6.6 ± 2.0 vs non-IB: 6.3 ± 2.5; P = 0.53). Only one patient (1.0%) treated with IB experienced vomiting, which resolved spontaneously. CONCLUSION: The metered-dose inhaler IB was ineffective in reducing the admission rate possibly because it was less effective than a nebulizer for IB inhalation.

Pediatric Case of Successful Point-of-Care Ultrasound-Guided Nasogastric Tube Placement.

BACKGROUND: Nasogastric tube (NGT) placement is commonly performed in pediatric emergency care and is classically confirmed by any one of several methods, among which auscultation or aspiration and radiography comprise the currently recognized as the reference standard. Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) is used to confirm NGT insertion, especially in adults or prehospital patients, but reports of its use in the pediatric emergency department (ED) are still scarce. We report a case of successful POCUS-guided NGT placement in a pediatric ED. CASE REPORT: A 3-year-old male undergoing remission therapy for acute lymphocytic leukemia presented to our ED with fever and decreased appetite. Tumor lysis syndrome was diagnosed, and endotracheal intubation was required because of the need for emergency hemodialysis for hypercalcemia. Because of difficulty in guiding the tube through the nose, ultrasound-guided placement was attempted. In the transverse view over the neck below the level of the cricoid cartilage, the 10-Fr NGT was visualized under ultrasound guidance as it passed through the esophagus. Subsequently, the entry of the NGT tip into the gastric cardia was confirmed on the subxiphoid longitudinal view. A chest radiograph confirmed the presence of the NGT in the stomach. WHY SHOULD AN EMERGENCY PHYSICIAN BE AWARE OF THIS?: Although the utility of POCUS for NGT placement was reported in adult patients, reports of its use in pediatric cases are still few. POCUS is a real-time, noninvasive, time-saving procedure that can be a useful alternative to radiography for confirming correct NGT placement.

The Effect of an Observation Unit on Pediatric Minor Head Injury.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of an observation unit (OU) in an emergency department on reducing unnecessary use of computed tomography (CT) for minor blunt head trauma. METHODS: This study was a retrospective before-and-after study of pediatric patients 18 years or younger with minor blunt head trauma. Patients with a Glasgow Coma Scale score of 14 or 15 who presented to the emergency department were included in the analysis. The rates of head CT use in the period before and after the institution of the OU were compared. RESULTS: In total, 4706 patients were analyzed (2344 from the period before and 2362 from period after OU institution). The median age of the patients was 3 years, and 64% were male in each period. The rates of CT use were 5.7% (95% confidence interval [CI], 4.8%-6.7%) in the period before and 4.0% (95% CI, 3.3%-4.9%) in the period after OU institution (P = 0.01). The relative risk reduction was 0.70 (95% CI, 0.54-0.91). CONCLUSIONS: The rate of CT use decreased by 30% as a result of OU institution. The OU was an effective means of avoiding an unnecessary head CT for pediatric minor head injuries.

[Gallbladder Cancer with Multiple Liver Metastases Completely Responding to Gemcitabile plus Cisplatin Chemotherapy-A Case Report].

A 59-year-old man was diagnosed with cholecystolithiasis and cholecystitis and underwent cholecystectomy. The pathological findings were moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma(pT2)in the gallbladder fundus. Sixteen days after surgery, he visited our hospital due to jaundice. Abdominal enhanced CT and EOB-MRI revealed multiple liver metastases and lymph node metastases in the hepatoduodenal ligament that we deemed to be unresectable. A metallic stent was inserted for bile duct obstruction, and he underwent chemotherapy with gemcitabine plus cisplatin(GC). After 12 courses of GC, the metastatic lesions disappeared, and the patient showed complete response. FDG-PET/CT showed FDG uptake in the hepatoduodenal ligament and we subsequently decided to perform surgery. He underwent resection of the extrahepatic bile duct and regional lymphadenectomy. The pathological findings revealed no residual carcinomas in the bile duct or lymph nodes. We are continuing chemotherapy at present, and the patient is alive with no signs of recurrence at 1 year and 3 months following the diagnosis of multiple liver metastases.

Diagnostic Accuracy of a 3-Point Ultrasound Protocol to Detect Esophageal or Endobronchial Mainstem Intubation in a Pediatric Emergency Department.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of the 3-point approach with ultrasonography for confirming endotracheal tube (ETT) placement in pediatric patients. METHODS: This was a prospective study conducted at a tertiary care center in Japan between March 2014 and March 2016. Children aged 0 to 18 years requiring endotracheal intubation in our emergency department (ED) who underwent ultrasonography for confirming ETT placement were enrolled. Patients who had already undergone a tracheotomy or intubation before arrival at our ED or who had severe neck injuries hindering ultrasonography were excluded. Quantitative capnography and portable chest x-ray imaging were used as the reference standard for the confirmation of proper ETT placement. The main outcome was the diagnostic accuracy of the 3-point approach with ultrasonography for detecting inappropriate ETT placement. RESULTS: In total, 68 patients were enrolled. The median age was 17 months (interquartile range, 8-40), and 51.4% were males. Three (4.4%) and 7 (10.3%) patients had esophageal and endobronchial mainstem intubation, respectively. The patients received emergency intubation due to a dysfunction of the central nervous system (45.6%) or respiratory failure (22.0%). The sensitivity and specificity of esophageal versus tracheal intubation was 100% (95% confidence interval [CI], 54.9%-100.0%) and 100% (95% CI, 97.9%-100.0%), respectively, whereas for endobronchial mainstem intubation versus tracheal intubation, the sensitivity and specificity was 85.7% (95% CI, 56.7%-96.0%) and 98.3% (95% CI, 94.8%-99.5%), respectively. Agreement between the reviewers was high (kappa coefficient, 0.78). CONCLUSION: The 3-point approach with ultrasonography was a feasible method for detecting esophageal and endobronchial mainstem intubation in pediatric patients.