Risk factors for psychosocial dysfunction among enrollees in the State Children's Health Insurance Program.

OBJECTIVE: The authors studied enrollees in the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) (Title XXI) to characterize risk factors for psychosocial dysfunction among children of the working poor. METHODS: Medical and psychosocial variables were included in a survey completed by 393 parents of children enrolled in SCHIP. Regression analysis was used to examine the relationship between these variables and scores on the Pediatric Symptom Checklist, a measure of psychosocial dysfunction among children. RESULTS: Stepwise multiple regression showed that parental dysphoria, parental history of psychiatric or substance use problems, childhood chronic medical illness, and exposure to traumatic events each contributed independently to variance in psychosocial dysfunction in this population, explaining 34 percent of total variance. CONCLUSIONS: Despite strong progress in implementing SCHIP at the state level, the behavioral health care needs of children of the working poor have not been well defined. This study identified risk factors that can be easily found in the patient's medical record or detected during an interview by the primary care physician. Thus screening to identify children at risk of psychosocial dysfunction is warranted among SCHIP enrollees.

Angiographic evaluation of peripheral arterial occlusive disease and its role as a prognostic determinant for major amputation in diabetic subjects with foot ulcers.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate in diabetic patients with foot ulcers the angiographic findings of peripheral occlusive arterial disease and their role as a prognostic determinant for major amputation. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: From 1993 to 1995, 104 diabetic inpatients with foot ulcers underwent arteriography on the ulcerated limb. Stenoses in the iliac trunk, the superficial femoral artery, the profunda femoral artery, the popliteal artery, the anterior tibial artery, the posterior tibial artery, and the peroneal artery were scored on the basis of vessel lumen reduction: 0 if stenoses involved a reduction in the vessel lumen of < 50%, 1 if stenoses involved 50 to < 75% reduction, 2 if stenoses involved 75 to < 100% reduction, and 3 if total occlusion was present. The sum of the points assigned to each of these arteries was called the angiographic score. RESULTS: Stenoses causing a vessel lumen reduction > or = 50% were detected in 103 patients (99%). Stenoses were also detected in subjects with palpable foot pulses, ankle-brachial indexes > or = 1, or transcutaneous oxygen tension > or = 50 mmHg. The risk of major amputation was increased significantly when total occlusion was present in the popliteal and infrapopliteal arteries (chi 2 for trend = 50.57, P < 0.001). No major amputation was carried out in patients with angiographic scores < 10; major amputation was carried out in all the patients with scores > 14. Multivariate analysis indicated a high angiographic score as an independent risk factor for major amputation (odds ratio 2.32, P = 0.001, CI 1.40-3.84). CONCLUSIONS: Angiography permits an exact detection of occlusive arterial disease in subjects with normal results for noninvasive vascular procedures. A score that has a relevant prognostic value for major amputation can be obtained from the evaluation of the extent and diffusion of the stenoses.