Characterizing Multiple Perpetrator Sexual Assaults in the Adolescent Female Population.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To determine whether differences exist between the acute presentations and post-assault needs of youth presenting to an emergency department (ED) following multiple perpetrator sexual assault (MPSA) compared with those presenting after single perpetrator sexual assault. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study of all female adolescents evaluated in an urban pediatric ED between 2014 and 2021 for acute sexual assault was conducted. Demographic characteristics and assault outcomes were assessed using bivariate analyses. RESULTS: Survivors of MPSA were not more likely than survivors of single perpetrator assaults to be diagnosed with an anal-genital injury or sexually transmitted infection but were more likely to re-present in the subsequent year for an emergent mental health concern (31% vs 11%, P = .001), including suicide attempt (6% vs 1%, P = .022). CONCLUSION: The high rate of subsequent ED visits for mental health concerns among female adolescent survivors of MPSA highlights the need for providing specialized support to this population.

Improving HIV post-exposure prophylaxis rates after pediatric acute sexual assault.

The purpose of our study was to increase the rate of children with appropriate HIV-PEP regimens among those diagnosed with sexual assault in The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Emergency Department (ED). The outcome measure was the percent of patients receiving correct HIV-PEP. We retrospectively reviewed 97 charts over 31 months to define the baseline rate of children receiving appropriate HIV-PEP regimens (pre QI-implementation period: 2/2012-8/2014). Among children in which HIV-PEP was indicated following sexual assault, 40% received the recommended 28-day course. Root cause analysis indicated prescribing errors accounted for 87% of patients not receiving appropriate HIV-PEP. Process drivers included standardizing care coordination follow-up calls to elicit specific information about HIV-PEP, ED educational initiatives targeted at HIV-PEP prescribing, revision of the clinical pathway to specify indicated duration of HIV-PEP, and revision of the order set to auto-populate the number of days for the HIV-PEP prescription. During the QI-implementation period (9/2014-4/2015), the rate of appropriate HIV-PEP increased to 64% (median 60%) and the average number of days between incorrect HIV-PEP regimens was 24.5. Post QI-implementation (5/2015-3/2016), the rate of appropriate HIV-PEP increased to 84% (median 100%) and the average number of days between incorrect HIV-PEP regimens increased to 78.4. A multifaceted quality improvement process improved the rate of receipt of appropriate HIV-PEP regimens for pediatric victims of sexual assault. Decision support tools are instrumental in sustaining ideal care delivery, but require ongoing evaluation and improvement in order to remain optimally effective.

Two-Step Process for ED UTI Screening in Febrile Young Children: Reducing Catheterization Rates.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Urinary tract infection (UTI) screening in febrile young children can be painful and time consuming. We implemented a screening protocol for UTI in a high-volume pediatric emergency department (ED) to reduce urethral catheterization, limiting catheterization to children with positive screens from urine bag specimens. METHODS: This quality-improvement initiative was implemented using 3 Plan-Do-Study-Act cycles, beginning with a small test of the proposed change in 1 ED area. To ensure appropriate patients received timely screening, care teams discussed patient risk factors and created patient-specific, appropriate procedures. The intervention was extended to the entire ED after providing education. Finally, visual cues were added into the electronic health record, and nursing scripts were developed to enlist family participation. A time-series design was used to study the impact of the 6-month intervention by using a p-chart to determine special cause variation. The primary outcome measure for the study was defined as the catheterization rate in febrile children ages 6 to 24 months. RESULTS: The ED reduced catheterization rates among febrile young children from 63% to <30% over a 6-month period with sustained results. More than 350 patients were spared catheterization without prolonging ED length of stay. Additionally, there was no change in the revisit rate or missed UTIs among those followed within the hospital's network. CONCLUSIONS: A 2-step less-invasive process for screening febrile young children for UTI can be instituted in a high-volume ED without increasing length of stay or missing cases of UTI.

Practice variation in screening for sexually transmitted infections with nucleic acid amplification tests during prepubertal sexual abuse evaluations.

BACKGROUND: Although recent recommendations for children after suspected sexual abuse incorporate nucleic acid amplification tests (NAATs) in algorithms that detect sexually transmitted infections (STIs), screening practices in the community remain uncertain. STUDY OBJECTIVE: We examined screening practices over time and across a variety of pediatric settings for the evaluation of STIs in sexually abused children. METHODS: A consecutive cohort of prepubertal children younger than 11 years of age who were suspected to have been sexually abused were identified between May 2002 and April 2005 at a large tertiary children's hospital and its supporting primary care network. Detailed histories and examinations based on chart abstraction were linked to hospital laboratory records to identify those who were screened for Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae by means of cultures, NAATs, or both. Chi-square and logistic regression analyses identified factors associated with screening, including the effects of screening location and year of study on the likelihood that particular tests were obtained. RESULTS: Among the initial visits of 1068 children, 32% occurred in the specialty child abuse clinic (CARE Clinic), 62% in the emergency department, and 6% in the primary care setting. Follow-up visits occurred in only 7% of children. The performance of at least one screening test increased each year, from 12% in year 1 to 18% in year 3 (P = 0.01). Among the 162 children in whom tests were obtained, there was a significant decrease in the use of culture techniques over time, from 100% in year 1 to 75% in year 3 (P < 0.001). At the same time, there was a steady increase in the use of NAATs in total (from 2% in year 1 to 41% in year 3, P < 0.001), and in the absence of culture techniques (from 0% in year 1 to 26% in year 3, P < 0.001). This growth in the use of NAATs alone was particularly seen in the emergency department setting, where 33% of children were screened only by NAAT by year 3 (P = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Screening rates for STIs increased over time, a trend that is explained primarily by the use of NAATs in the absence of other tests. The increasing use of NAATs will have to be addressed more fully in creating future guidelines for this population.

Prevalence of tubo-ovarian abscess in adolescents diagnosed with pelvic inflammatory disease in a pediatric emergency department.

OBJECTIVES: The rate of tubo-ovarian abscess (TOA) in adolescents with pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) is reported to range from 17% to 20%. However, no reports have focused specifically on the adolescent patient presenting to the emergency department (ED), regardless of whether they are treated in the inpatient or outpatient setting. Recent changes in the 2002 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Guidelines for the Treatment of Sexually Transmitted Diseases and sexually transmitted infection screening programs are likely to have impacted both the prevalence of PID and the rates of its complications, particularly TOA. Given that most patients with PID are treated as outpatients, it is imperative to accurately assess the prevalence of TOA in this population. Therefore, we sought to determine the rate of TOA in female adolescents diagnosed with PID in a large urban pediatric ED. METHODS: We performed a retrospective medical record review to assess the prevalence of TOA in adolescents diagnosed with PID in the ED by an attending physician in pediatric emergency medicine. All cases were identified on the basis of the clinical criteria from the 2002 CDC Guidelines for the Treatment of Sexually Transmitted Diseases. Data collected included historical and physical examination findings, and laboratory and radiological imaging results. RESULTS: Three (2.4%; 95% confidence interval, 0.5-6.7) of 127 patients diagnosed with PID in the ED who had imaging or clinical follow-up were also found to have a TOA. The mean age of the patients was 16 years. Most patients (89%) had imaging studies performed within 24 hours; most of these studies (97%) were pelvic ultrasounds. Eleven patients did not have imaging but had clinical follow-up within 72 hours. Four patients were diagnosed with PID during the study period and were lost to follow-up. CONCLUSION: The rate of TOA in adolescents diagnosed with PID in an urban pediatric ED is much lower than the rates previously reported in adolescents. This lower prevalence may be attributed to the broader 2002 CDC guidelines for diagnosing PID. In addition, community-based screening programs for Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae may help to identify young women at risk for developing PID earlier in the course of infection.

Unscheduled revisits to a pediatric emergency department: risk factors for children with fever or infection-related complaints.

OBJECTIVE: Unscheduled revisits (URVs) may serve as markers of quality of care and may be costly both in financial terms as well as in limitations they place on primary care. We performed this study to examine the association between characteristics easily obtainable during an emergency department (ED) visit and URV to identify a subpopulation of children who may warrant interventions to decrease URV. METHODS: This is a case-control study of patients visiting an urban tertiary care pediatric ED for a fever or infectious disease-related complaint. Cases were defined as patients who had URVs that occurred within 72 hours of an initial ED visit. Control patients were selected by simple random sampling of an enumerated computerized list of all ED visits. Data on independent variables of interest were collected from a chart review and telephone interview with the patient's caregiver. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were performed to determine factors associated with URV. RESULTS: Seventy-five percent of cases and controls participated in the study. Logistic regression analysis revealed 3 factors independently associated with URV for fever or infectious disease-related complaints in children. These included presence of chronic disease (adjusted odds ratio 1.75, 95% confidence interval 1.01-3.03), Medicaid insurance (adjusted odds ratio 1.86, 95% confidence interval 1.04-3.32) and acute triage category (adjusted odds ratio 1.83, 95% confidence interval 1.08-3.10). CONCLUSIONS: These factors may be used to identify children in the ED at greater risk for URV and may point to a need for improved discharge instructions and enhanced communication with primary care and systems to arrange follow-up. Results of this work may also identify at-risk populations for future qualitative research or intervention studies on URV to EDs.

Return visits to a pediatric emergency department.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the incidence of return visits (RVs), types of RVs, and factors associated with RVs to a pediatric emergency department (ED). METHODS: : Retrospective cohort study of patients seen in an urban, tertiary care pediatric ED. MAIN OUTCOME: RV within 48 hours, identified from a computerized log. RESULTS: The total RV rate was 3.5% (95% confidence interval, 3.3-3.6), similar to rates (2.4% to 3.4%) reported in general EDs. Most (78.5%) RVs were unscheduled, 17% were scheduled, and 4% were called back to the ED. Infectious disease (45%), respiratory (16%), and trauma (16%) accounted for most RV diagnoses. When compared with the overall ED population, RV patients were more likely to be younger than 2 years [relative risk, 1.3 (1.2-1.4)], to be admitted to the hospital [relative risk, 1.3 (1.2-1.5)], and to be triaged as acute [relative risk, 1.1 (1.0-1.2)]. Patients called back to the ED were younger, more likely to be triaged as acute, and more likely to be admitted than other RV patients. Significant diagnoses were made at RV in 7 (0.4%; 95% confidence interval, 0.1-0.7) patients, half of whom were called back to the ED or had a scheduled RV. CONCLUSION: Similarities between our pediatric ED RV rate and other published research implies that benchmarking and quality improvement tools for RV can be used and compared in both pediatric and general EDs. Focusing on systems to call patients back to the ED when necessary may be an efficient way to reduce medical error and adverse patient outcomes.