Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (SAGES) guidelines development: standard operating procedure.

INTRODUCTION: The mission of the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (SAGES) is to innovate, educate, and collaborate to improve patient care. A critical element in meeting this mission is the publishing of trustworthy and current guidelines for the practicing surgeon. METHODS: In this manuscript, we outline the steps of developing high quality practice guidelines using a completely volunteer-based professional organization. RESULTS: SAGES has developed a standardized approach to train volunteer surgeons and trainees alike to develop clinically pertinent guidelines in a timely manner, without sacrificing quality. CONCLUSIONS: This methodology can be used more widely by volunteer organizations to efficiently develop effective tools for practicing physicians.

An Evaluation of Pediatric Secondary Overtriage in the Pennsylvania Trauma System.

BACKGROUND: We sought to determine the secondary overtriage rate of pediatric trauma patients admitted to pediatric trauma centers. We hypothesized that pediatric secondary overtriage (POT) would constitute a large percentage of admissions to PTC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The Pennsylvania Trauma Outcome Study database was retrospectively queried from 2003 to 2017 for pediatric (age ≤ 18 y) trauma patients transferred to accredited pediatric trauma centers in Pennsylvania (n = 6). Patients were stratified based on discharge within (early) and beyond (late) 24 h following admission. POT was defined as patients transferred to a PTC with an early discharge. Multilevel mixed-effects logistic regression model controlling for demographic and injury severity covariates were utilized to determine the adjusted impact of injury patterns on early discharge. RESULTS: A total of 37,653 patients met inclusion criteria. For transfers, POT compromised 18,752 (49.8%) patients. Compared to POT, non-POT were more severely injured (ISS: 10 versus 6;P < 0.001) and spent less time in the ED (Min: 181 versus 207;P < 0.001). In adjusted analysis, concussion, closed skull vault fractures, supracondylar humerus fractures, and consults to neurosurgery were associated with increased odds of POT. Overall, femur fracture, child abuse evaluation, and consults to plastic surgery, orthopedics, and ophthalmology were all associated with a decreased risk of being POT. CONCLUSIONS: POT comprises 49.8% of PTC transfer admissions in Pennsylvania's trauma system. Improving community resources for management of pediatric concussion and mild TBI could result in decreased rates of POT to PTCs. Developing better inter-facility transfer guidelines and increased education of adult TC and nontrauma center hospitals is needed to decrease POT. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Epidemiologic study, level III.

Holes in the wall: Examining gaps in knowledge in child and adolescent mental health in Tanzania - Scoping review.

OBJECTIVES: To perform scoping review of the existing literature available specific to child and adolescent mental health in Tanzania. METHODS: An extensive literature search of PubMed, Scopus, MEDLINE and EMBASE was undertaken to identify studies that focussed specifically on mental illness in children and young people in Tanzania. This included neurological and functional disorders, affective disorders, psychosis, epidemiological, intervention and treatment-based studies. Qualitative analysis of the studies was then undertaken to assess what is currently known about the subject and how reliable this information is and to identify areas for further research. RESULTS: Of 23 studies were included in the final synthesis, which could be broadly split into studies focussing on the prevalence and incidence of child and adolescent mental illness, hypothesised causes and correlations, identified treatments and interventions and qualitative studies of human experience. CONCLUSION: There is a dearth of published research regarding child and adolescent mental health in Tanzania. Although some high-quality studies allow us good insight into the epidemiology of mental illness, interventional studies are often small and low-power, and significant correlational relationships are yet to be drawn. There is significant scope for further child and adolescent mental health research in Tanzania.

OBJECTIFS: Analyse de la portée de la littérature existante disponible spécifique à la santé mentale des enfants et des adolescents en Tanzanie. MÉTHODES: Une recherche documentaire approfondie de PubMed, Scopus, Medline et Embase a été entreprise pour identifier les études qui se concentraient spécifiquement sur la maladie mentale chez les enfants et les jeunes en Tanzanie. Cela comprenait des troubles neurologiques et fonctionnels, des troubles affectifs, des psychoses, des études épidémiologiques, d'intervention et basées sur le traitement. Une analyse qualitative des études a ensuite été entreprise pour évaluer ce que l'on sait actuellement sur le sujet, la fiabilité de ces informations et pour identifier des domaines pour des recherche plus approfondie. RÉSULTATS: 23 études ont été incluses dans la synthèse finale, qui pourrait être largement divisée en études axées sur la prévalence et l'incidence de la maladie mentale chez l'enfant et l'adolescent, les causes et corrélations hypothétiques, les traitements et interventions identifiés et les études qualitatives de l'expérience humaine. CONCLUSION: Il y a une pénurie de recherches publiées sur la santé mentale des enfants et des adolescents en Tanzanie. Bien que certaines études de haute qualité nous permettent de bien comprendre l'épidémiologie de la maladie mentale, les études interventionnelles sont souvent de petite taille et de faible puissance, et des relations de corrélation importantes doivent encore être établies. Il existe une marge de manœuvre importante pour plus de recherches sur la santé mentale des enfants et des adolescents en Tanzanie.

An analysis of pediatric social vulnerability in the Pennsylvania trauma system.

BACKGROUND: The social vulnerability index (SVI) is used to assess resilience to external influences that may affect human health. Social vulnerability has been noted to be a barrier to healthcare access for pediatric patients. We hypothesized that Pennsylvania (PA) pediatric trauma patients high on the social vulnerability index would have significantly lower rates of rehab admission following admission to a hospital for traumatic injury. METHODS: The SVI was determined for each PA zip code area utilizing the census tract based 2014 SVI provided by the CDC along with a weighted crosswalk between census tracts and zip code areas using the Housing and Urban Development zip code crosswalk files. The rate of the uninsured population was extracted from the CDC SVI files in addition to other US Census variables based upon estimates from the 2014 American Community Survey (ACS). We also included the individual primary payer status of each subject. Pediatric (age <15 years) trauma admissions with in-hospital mortality excluded, were extracted from the PA Healthcare Cost Containment Council (PHC4) for all hospital admissions for the period of 2003-2015 (n = 63,545). Complete case analysis was conducted based upon the final model providing a sample of 52,794. Cases were coded as rehab patients based upon discharge status (n = 603; 1.1%). A multi-level logistic model was used to determine if subjects had a higher odds of being discharged to rehab based on SVI, undertriage rates of their zip code area of residence and their own primary payer status; this was adjusted for age, multi-system injury and a head, chest or abdomen injury with abbreviate injury scale (AIS) severity > = 3. RESULTS: SVI and undertriage rates of the zip code areas of residence were not significantly associated with admission to rehab. The individual primary payer status of the subject was significantly associated with admission to rehab (OR 95%CI vs. self/uninsured; Medicaid 3.65 1.84-7.24; Commercial = 3.09 1.56-6.11; other/unknown = 2.85 1.02-7.93). Admission to rehab was also significantly associated with age, injury severity (ISS), head or chest injury with AIS scores > = 3, year of admission and hospital type. CONCLUSION: Individual patient level factors (primary payer of patient) may be associated with the odds of rehab admission rather than neighborhood factors. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Epidemiologic: Level III.

A comparison of adolescent penetrating trauma patients managed at pediatric versus adult trauma centers in a mature trauma system.

BACKGROUND: While there is little debate that pediatric trauma centers (PTC) are uniquely equipped to manage pediatric trauma patients, the extent to which adolescents benefit from treatment there remains controversial. We sought to elucidate differences in management approach and outcome between PTC and adult trauma centers (ATC) for the adolescent penetrating trauma population. We hypothesized that improved mortality would be observed at ATC for this subset of patients. METHODS: Adolescent patients (age, 15-18 years), presenting to Pennsylvania-accredited trauma centers between 2003 and 2017 with penetrating injury, were queried from the Pennsylvania Trauma Outcome Study database. Dead on arrival, transfer patients, and those admitted to a Level III or Level IV trauma center were excluded from analysis. Patient length of stay, number of complications, surgical intervention, and mortality were compared between ATC and PTC. Multilevel mixed effects logistic regression models with trauma center as the clustering variable were used to assess the impact of center type (ATC/PTC) on management approach and mortality adjusted for appropriate covariates. RESULTS: A total of 2,630 adolescent patients met inclusion criteria (PTC: n = 428 [16.3%]; ATC: n = 2,202 [83.7%]). Pediatric trauma centers had a lower adjusted odds of mortality (adjusted odds ratio [AOR], 0.35; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.17-0.74; p = 0.006) and a lower adjusted odds of surgery (AOR, 0.67; 95% CI, 0.0.48-0.93; p = 0.016) than their ATC counterparts. There were no differences in complication rates (AOR, 0.94; 95% CI, 0.57-1.55; p = 0.793) or length of stay longer than 4 days (AOR, 0.95; 95% CI, 0.61-1.48; p = 0.812) between the PTCs and ATCs. There were also differences in penetrating injury type between PTC and ATC. CONCLUSION: The adolescent penetrating trauma patient population treated at PTC had less surgery performed with improved mortality compared with ATC. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Therapeutic, Level IV.

Population-Based Analysis of Firearm Injuries among Young Children in the United States, 2010-2015.

Firearm violence in the United States knows no age limit. This study compares the survival of children younger than five years to children and adolescents of age 5-19 years who presented to an ED for gunshot wounds (GSWs) in the United States to test the hypothesis of higher GSW mortality in very young children. A study of GSW patients aged 19 years and younger who survived to reach medical care was performed using the Nationwide ED Sample for 2010-2015. Hospital survival and incidence of fatal and nonfatal GSWs in the United States were the study outcomes. A multilevel logistic regression model estimated the strength of association among predictors of hospital mortality. The incidence of ED presentation for GSW is as high as 19 per 100,000 population per year. Children younger than five years were 2.7 times as likely to die compared with older children (15.3% vs 5.6%). Children younger than one year had the highest hospital mortality, 33.1 per cent. The mortality from GSW is highest among the youngest children compared with older children. This information may help policy makers and the public better understand the impact of gun violence on the youngest and most vulnerable Americans.

An analysis of pediatric trauma center undertriage in a mature trauma system.

BACKGROUND: Improved mortality as a result of appropriate triage has been well established in adult trauma and may be generalizable to the pediatric trauma population as well. We sought to determine the overall undertriage rate (UTR) in the pediatric trauma population within Pennsylvania (PA). We hypothesized that a significant portion of pediatric trauma population would be undertriaged. METHODS: All pediatric (age younger than 15) admissions meeting trauma criteria (International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision: 800-959) from 2003 to 2015 were extracted from the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council (PHC4) database and the Pennsylvania Trauma Systems Foundation (PTSF) registry. Undertriage was defined as patients not admitted to PTSF-verified pediatric trauma centers (n = 6). The PHC4 contains inpatient admissions within PA, while PTSF only reports admissions to PA trauma centers. ArcGIS Desktop was used for geospatial mapping of undertriage. RESULTS: A total of 37,607 cases in PTSF and 63,954 cases in PHC4 met criteria, suggesting UTR of 45.8% across PA. Geospatial mapping reveals significant clusters of undertriage regions with high UTR in the eastern half of the state compared to low UTR in the western half. High UTR seems to be centered around nonpediatric facilities. The UTR for patients with a probability of death 1% or less was 39.2%. CONCLUSION: Undertriage is clustered in eastern PA, with most areas of high undertriage located around existing trauma centers in high-density population areas. This pattern may suggest pediatric undertriage is related to a system issue as opposed to inadequate access. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Retrospective study, without negative criteria, Level III.

Outcome differences in adolescent blunt severe polytrauma patients managed at pediatric versus adult trauma centers.

BACKGROUND: Previous research suggests adolescent trauma patients can be managed equally effectively at pediatric and adult trauma centers. We sought to determine whether this association would be upheld for adolescent severe polytrauma patients. We hypothesized that no difference in adjusted outcomes would be observed between pediatric trauma centers (PTCs) and adult trauma centers (ATCs) for this population. METHODS: All severely injured adolescent (aged 12-17 years) polytrauma patients were extracted from the Pennsylvania Trauma Outcomes Study database from 2003 to 2015. Polytrauma was defined as an Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) score ≥3 for two or more AIS-defined body regions. Dead on arrival, transfer, and penetrating trauma patients were excluded from analysis. ATC were defined as adult-only centers, whereas standalone pediatric hospitals and adult centers with pediatric affiliation were considered PTC. Multilevel mixed-effects logistic regression models assessed the adjusted impact of center type on mortality and total complications while controlling for age, shock index, Injury Severity Score, Glasgow Coma Scale motor score, trauma center level, case volume, and injury year. A generalized linear mixed model characterized functional status at discharge (FSD) while controlling for the same variables. RESULTS: A total of 1,606 patients met inclusion criteria (PTC: 868 [54.1%]; ATC: 738 [45.9%]), 139 (8.66%) of which died in-hospital. No significant difference in mortality (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]: 1.10, 95% CI 0.54-2.24; p = 0.794; area under the receiver operating characteristic: 0.89) was observed between designations in adjusted analysis; however, FSD (AOR: 0.38, 95% CI 0.15-0.97; p = 0.043) was found to be lower and total complication trends higher (AOR: 1.78, 95% CI 0.98-3.32; p = 0.058) at PTC for adolescent polytrauma patients. CONCLUSION: Contrary to existing literature on adolescent trauma patients, our results suggest patients aged 12-17 presenting with polytrauma may experience improved overall outcomes when managed at adult compared to pediatric trauma centers. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Epidemiologic study, level III.

Pancreatic Endocrine Neoplasm Concomitant with a Complicated Endocrine History: A Case Report and Literature Review.

Background: Pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (PNETs) are rare, and metastases when present are most commonly found in the liver or the peripancreatic lymph nodes. In this study, we present a patient who developed a metastatic PNET in the liver in the setting of multiple concomitant autoimmune disorders, including pernicious anemia and atrophic gastritis with hypergastrinemia. Case presentation: The patient is a 70-year-old woman with a history of Hashimoto's thyroiditis, thymoma, gastric carcinoid tumors, and autoimmune atrophic gastritis with pernicious anemia. She was found to have a 2 cm mass in the pancreaticoduodenal groove originating from the pancreas. A preoperative endoscopic ultrasound with fine-needle aspiration showed a well-differentiated PNET. During surgery, she was found to have multiple subcentimeter liver lesions, which on frozen section were shown to be a metastatic neuroendocrine tumor. After surgical resection, final pathology revealed a PNET with metastases to the liver. The metastatic lesions stained positive for gastrin. Conclusion: We were only able to find one other example in the literature of a PNET occurring in association with pernicious anemia. Our patient developed a metastatic PNET in the setting of multiple autoimmune disorders, including pernicious anemia.

An Analysis of Beta-Blocker Administration Pre-and Post-Traumatic Brain Injury with Subanalyses for Head Injury Severity and Myocardial Injury.

A growing body of literature indicates that beta-blocker administration after traumatic brain injury (TBI) is cerebroprotective, limiting secondary injury; however, the effects of preinjury beta blocker status remain poorly understood. We sought to characterize the effects of pre- and postinjury beta-blocker administration on mortality with subanalyses accounting for head injury severity and myocardial injury. In a Level II trauma center, all admissions of patients ≥18 years with a head Abbreviated Injury Scale Score ≥2, Glasgow Coma Scale ≤13 from May 2011 to May 2013 were queried. Demographic, injury-specific, and outcome variables were analyzed using univariate analyses. Subsequent multivariate analyses were conducted to determine adjusted odds of mortality for beta-blocker usage controlling for age, Injury Severity Score, head Abbreviated Injury Scale, arrival Glasgow Coma Scale, ventilator use, and intensive care unit stay. A total of 214 trauma admissions met inclusion criteria: 112 patients had neither pre- nor postinjury beta-blocker usage, 46 patients had preinjury beta-blocker usage, and 94 patients had postinjury beta-blocker usage. Both unadjusted and adjusted odds ratios of preinjury beta-blocker were insignificant with respect to mortality. However, postinjury in-hospital administration of beta blockers was found to significantly in the decrease of mortality in both univariate (P = 0.002) and multivariate analyses (P = 0.001). Our data indicate that beta-blocker administration post-TBI in hospital reduces odds of mortality; however, preinjury beta-blocker usage does not. Additionally, myocardial injury is a useful indicator for beta-blocker administration post-TBI. Further research into which beta blockers confer the best benefits as well as the optimal period of beta-blocker administration post-TBI is recommended.

Femur fractures should not be considered distracting injuries for cervical spine assessment.

INTRODUCTION: The National Emergency X-Radiography Utilization Study (NEXUS) clinical decision rule is extremely sensitive for clearance of cervical spine (C-spine) injury in blunt trauma patients with distracting injuries. OBJECTIVES: We sought to determine whether the NEXUS criteria would maintain sensitivity for blunt trauma patients when femur fractures were not considered a distracting injury and an absolute indication for diagnostic imaging. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed blunt trauma patients with at least 1 femur fracture who presented to our emergency department as trauma activations from 2009 to 2011 and underwent C-spine injury evaluation. Presence of C-spine injury requiring surgical intervention was evaluated. RESULTS: Of 566 trauma patients included, 77 (13.6%) were younger than 18 years. Cervical spine injury was diagnosed in 53 (9.4%) of 566. A total of 241 patients (42.6%) had positive NEXUS findings in addition to distracting injury; 51 (21.2%) of these had C-spine injuries. Of 325 patients (57.4%) with femur fractures who were otherwise NEXUS negative, only 2 (0.6%) had C-spine injuries (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.2%-2.2%); both were stable and required no operative intervention. Use of NEXUS criteria, excluding femur fracture as an indication for imaging, detected all significant injuries with a sensitivity for any C-spine injury of 96.2% (95% CI, 85.9%-99.3%) and negative predictive value of 99.4% (95% CI, 97.6%-99.9%). CONCLUSIONS: In our patient population, all significant C-spine injuries were identified by NEXUS criteria without considering the femur fracture a distracting injury and indication for computed tomographic imaging. Reconsidering femur fracture in this context may decrease radiation exposure and health care expenditure with little risk of missed diagnoses.

The ACT Alert: preliminary results of a novel protocol to assess geriatric head trauma patients on anticoagulation.

In busy emergency departments (EDs), elderly patients on anticoagulation (AC) sustaining minor injuries who are triaged to a lower priority for evaluation are at risk for potentially serious consequences. We sought to determine if a novel ED protocol prioritizes workup and improves outcome. In a Pennsylvania-verified Level II trauma center, the ACT (AntiCoagulation and Trauma) Alert was implemented in March 2012. Triage parameters include: age 65 years or older, AC agents, Glasgow Coma Score (GCS) 13 or greater, and head trauma 24 hours or less. ACT Alerts are announced overhead in the ED and require assessment by an ED physician, nurse, and phlebotomist in 15 minutes or less. Furthermore, they necessitate Point of Care international normalized ratio (INR) 20 minutes or less and head computed tomography (CT) scan 30 minutes or less. Positive CT findings mandate trauma service consultation. ACT Alert patients from March to December 2012 were compared with ED patients 65 years or older, GCS 13 or greater, on AC with the same chief complaints as ACT Alerts from June 2011 to February 2012 (control). A P value ≤ 0.05 was considered significant. Of 752 study patients, 415 were ACT and 337 were controls. There were no significant differences between groups in age, elevated INR, or head bleeds. ACT patients had significantly shorter median times from ED arrival to INR (ACT 13 minutes vs control 80 minutes; P < 0.001) and to head CT (ACT 35 minutes vs control 65 minutes; P < 0.001). Of admitted patients, ACT had a significantly shorter median length of stay (LOS) (ACT 3.7 days vs control 5.0 days; P < 0.001). Although trends toward improved outcome were noted, no statistically significant differences were identified. The ACT Alert improves ED throughput and reduces hospital LOS while effectively identifying at-risk, mildly head injured geriatric patients on AC.

An analysis of geriatric recidivism in the era of accountable care organizations.

BACKGROUND: To date, there are almost 500 accountable care organizations (ACOs) across the United States emphasizing cost-effective care. Readmission largely impacts health care cost; therefore, we sought to determine factors associated with geriatric trauma readmissions (recidivism) within our institution. METHODS: All admissions from 2000 to 2011 attributed to patients 65 years or older at our Level II trauma center, recently verified by Medicare as an ACO, were queried. Patients were classified as recidivist or nonrecidivist. The first admissions of recidivist patients were compared with the nonrecidivist admissions with respect to sex, age, race, primary insurance, admission Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score, Injury Severity Score (ISS), hospital length of stay, mechanism of injury (MOI), preexisting conditions, and discharge destination. Factors found to be significant predictors of recidivism in univariate analyses were subsequently incorporated into a multivariate logistic regression model. In addition, the second admission's MOI was compared with the first admission's MOI, and the proportion of first, second, and third admissions attributed to falls was calculated. A p < 0.05 was significant. RESULTS: Between 2000 and 2011, a total of 4,963 unique patients were admitted to the trauma center at 65 years or older. This population was composed of 287 recidivists (5.8%) and 4,676 nonrecidivists (94.2%). When placed in a multivariate logistic regression, female sex, admission GCS score of 15, history of head trauma, and preexisting pulmonary disease were identified as significant predictors of recidivism. A trend toward increasing proportion of injuries attributed to falls was found with each subsequent trauma admission (81.5% [234 of 287] of first admissions, 88.2% [253 of 287] of second admissions, and 90.5% [19 of 21] of third admissions). CONCLUSION: Our study identifies specific factors that should be targeted by social service and prevention resources to inhibit recidivism in the elderly. In the brave new world of ACOs, trauma centers must identify high-risk populations for the consumption of limited resources. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Care management study, level IV. Prognostic study, level III.

An analysis of Brain Trauma Foundation traumatic brain injury guideline compliance and patient outcome.

INTRODUCTION: Evidence-based guidelines for the care of severe traumatic brain injury have been available from the Brain Trauma Foundation (BTF) since 1995. A total of 15 recommendations compose the current guidelines. Although each individual guideline has been validated in isolation, to date, little research has examined the guidelines in composite. We examined the relationship between compliance with the BTF severe TBI guidelines and mortality. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In a Pennsylvania-verified, mature Level II trauma centre, patients with an admission Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) ≤ 8 and an abnormal head CT from 2007 to 2012 were queried from the trauma registry. Exclusion criteria included: patients who sustained a non-survivable injury (AIS head 6), died ≤ 24 h, and/or were transferred to a paediatric trauma centre. Strict adherence to the BTF guidelines was determined in a binary fashion (yes/no). We then calculated each patient's percent compliance with total number of guidelines. Bivariate analysis was used to find significant predictors of mortality (p<0.05), including percent BTF guidelines compliance. Significant factors were added to a multivariable logistic regression model to look at mortality rates across the percent compliance spectrum. RESULTS: 185 Patients met inclusion criteria. Percent compliance ranged from 28.6% to 94.4%, (median=71.4%). Following adjustment for age, AIS head, and GCS motor, patients with 55-75% compliance (AOR: 0.20; 95%CI: 0.06-0.70) and >75% compliance (AOR: 0.27; 95%CI: 0.08-0.94) had reduced odds of mortality, as compared to <55% compliance to the BTF guidelines. When the unadjusted rate of mortality was compared across the compliance spectrum, the odds of mortality decreased as compliance increased until 75%, and then reversed. CONCLUSION: Our data indicate that full compliance with all 15 severe TBI guidelines is difficult to achieve and may not be necessary to optimally care for patients.

Hyponatremia as a fall predictor in a geriatric trauma population.

INTRODUCTION: Approximately one in three older adults fall each year, resulting in a significant proportion of geriatric traumatic injuries. In a hospital with a focus on geriatric fall prevention, we sought to characterize this population to develop targeted interventions. As mild hyponatremia, defined as a serum sodium <135meq/L, has been reported to be associated with falls, unsteadiness and attention deficits, we hypothesized that hyponatremia is associated with falls in our geriatric trauma population. METHODS: Gender, age, pre-existing conditions (cardiac disease, diabetes, hematologic disorder, liver disease, malignancy, musculoskeletal disorder, neurological disorder, obesity, psychiatric disorder, pulmonary disease, renal disease, thyroid disease), mechanism of injury and admitting serum sodium level were queried for all geriatric trauma admissions from 2008 to 2011. Mechanism of injury was coded as falls admissions and non-falls admissions. Admitting serum sodium levels were coded as hyponatremic (<135mmol/L) and not hyponatremic (≥135mmol/L). RESULTS: Of the 2370 geriatric trauma admissions during the study period, there were 1841 (77.7%) falls admissions and 293 (12.4%) patients who were hyponatremic. Gender, age, neurological disorder, hematologic disorder, and hyponatremia were found to be significant predictors of falls in both univariate and multivariable analyses. CONCLUSION: Hyponatremic patients are significantly more likely to be admitted for a fall than non-hyponatremic patients, when adjusting for age, neurological disorder, and hematologic disorder. Consequently, hyponatremia identification and management should be an integral part of any geriatric trauma fall prevention programme. Additionally, if hyponatremia is found during a geriatric fall workup, it should be corrected prior to discharge and closely monitored by a primary care physician to prevent recurrent episodes of falls.

Mature trauma intensivist model improves intensive care unit efficiency but not mortality.

BACKGROUND: Although the Leap Frog intensivist staffing model has been shown to improve outcomes in the intensive care unit (ICU), to date, no one has examined the effect of an intensivist model in a dedicated trauma ICU. With stricter adherence to evidence-based protocols and 24-hour availability, we hypothesized that a mature intensivist model in a trauma ICU would decrease mortality. METHODS: Level II trauma center trauma ICU admissions 2006 to 2011. The ICU care provided by 6 trauma intensivists. Two periods were compared: early (2006-2008) and mature (2009-2011). Patients matched on age, Injury Severity Score (ISS), preexisting conditions, and so on in a univariate analysis, with significant variables placed in a logistic regression model, with mortality as the outcome. RESULTS: A total of 3527 patients (2999 excluding do not resuscitate status) were reviewed. Age ≥65 (odds ratio [OR] 2.38, P < .001), ISS ≥17 (OR 3.3, P < .001), coagulopathy (OR 1.64, P = .004), and anemia (OR 1.73, P = .02) were independent predictors of mortality. Multivariate logistic model encompassing these factors found no statistically significant differences in mortality across the 6-year period. The ICU efficiency showed significant improvements in terms of ventilator days (30.1% EARLY vs 24.4% MATURE; P < .001), decreases in mean consultant use per patient (0.55 ± 0.85 EARLY vs 0.40 ± 0.74 MATURE; P < .001), and increase in number of bedside procedures per patient (0.09 ± 0.48 EARLY vs 0.40 ± 0.74 MATURE; P < .001 CONCLUSIONS: Our mature intensivists staffing model shows improvement in ICU throughput (ventilator days, ICU days, decreased consultant use, and increased bedside procedures) but no survival benefit. Further improvements in overall trauma mortality may lie in the resuscitative and operative phase of patient care.

Magnet hospitals are a magnet for higher survival rates at adult trauma centers.

BACKGROUND: Little is known about nursing care's impact on trauma outcomes. The Magnet Recognition Program recognizes hospitals for quality patient care and nursing excellence based on objective standards. We hypothesized that Magnet-designated trauma centers would have improved survival over their non-Magnet counterparts. METHODS: All 2009 to 2011 admissions to Pennsylvania's Level I and II trauma centers with more than 500 admissions during the study period (10 Magnet and 17 non-Magnet hospitals) were extracted from the Pennsylvania Trauma Systems Foundation State Registry. A logistic regression model with mortality as the dependent variable included the following variables: Magnet status, age, sex, admitting temperature, logit transformation of mortality probability predicted by the Trauma Mortality Prediction Model (TMPM-ais), systolic blood pressure, mechanism of injury, paralytic drug use, and Glasgow Coma Scale motor (GCSm) score. RESULTS: A total of 73,830 patients from the Pennsylvania Trauma Outcome Study database met inclusion criteria for this study. The Magnet and non-Magnet hospital groups were statistically indistinguishable with respect to level of designation, medical school association, surgical residency programs, in-house surgeons, and urban locations. Patients admitted to a Magnet hospital had a significantly decreased odds of mortality when compared with their non-Magnet counterparts (odds ratio, 0.83; 95% confidence interval, 0.70-0.99; p = 0.033), when controlling for numerous factors. Overall, the model has outstanding discrimination with a receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.93. CONCLUSION: Admission to a Magnet-designated hospital is associated with a 20% reduction in mortality. We believe that the Magnet program's attention to nursing competence has important consequences for trauma patients, as reflected in the improved survival rates in trauma patients admitted to Magnet-designated hospitals. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Epidemiologic/prognostic study, level III. Care management study, level IV.

Prothrombin complex concentrate accelerates international normalized ratio reversal and diminishes the extension of intracranial hemorrhage in geriatric trauma patients.

Warfarin therapy increases the incidence intracranial hemorrhage (ICH), especially in the geriatric population. Timely reversal of international normalized ratio (INR) is integral in the management of these patients for whom fresh frozen plasma (FFP) with vitamin K is the standard of treatment. We hypothesized that implementing a protocol that used prothrombin complex concentrate (PCC) would reverse INR values more swiftly and decrease the amount of FFP administered. In November 2011, a protocol was implemented for administering PCC to the geriatric population on warfarin admitted for life-threatening bleeds. These patients received 25 IU/kg ideal body weight of a three-factor PCC (Profilnine SD) if their INR was over 1.5 or greater. FFP was given if follow-up INR revealed an INR of 1.5 or greater. Retrospectively the data from 29 patients who received PCC were compared with a historical control group of 34 patients. Protocol use resulted in a significantly faster INR reversal (PCC: 151.6 ± 84.3 minutes vs control: 485.0 ± 321 minutes; P < 0.001), time to achieve an INR less than 1.5 (PCC: 484 ± 242 minutes vs control: 971 ± 1208 minutes; P = 0.036), and less FFP administered (PCC: 1.3 ± 1.0 vs control:3.3 ± 1.5; P < 0.001). PCC patients had a decreased incidence of progression of their ICH (PCC: 17.2% vs control: 44.2%; P = 0.031). Rapid reversal of coagulopathy in geriatric patients on warfarin is vital to limit the extent of ICH. PCC allows a much more rapid reversal than standard treatment with only FFP and vitamin K. Adopting such a protocol is associated not only with a more rapid reversal and less FFP use, but also less patients went on to extend their head bleeds.

Checklist-styled daily sign-out rounds improve hospital throughput in a major trauma center.

The checklist concept has received much attention as a result of its ability to improve patient care by minimizing complications. We hypothesized daily sign-out rounds using a checklist, by improving team communication and consistency of clinical care, could lead to expedited throughput for patients at a major trauma center. A retrospective study examined patients admitted to a mature trauma center. Two time periods, PRE (September 2008 to January 2009) and POST (September 2009 to January 2010), were selected to match for seasonal variation in admission diagnosis. An organ system-based checklist was used during daily sign-out for all admitted trauma patients in the POST period. We examined discharge status, complications and rates, and intensive care unit (ICU) and overall hospital length of stay for differences. There were similar numbers of patients (824 PRE vs 798 POST) admitted in these two cohorts. We found no statistical differences in the incidence of complications or mortality rate. We did discover statistically significant differences in the median ICU days (2 PRE vs 1 POST, P = 0.007) as well as median hospital length of stay (2 days, interquartile differences Q1 to Q3 PRE [1 to 5] and POST [1 to 4] P = 0.000). These trends remained valid even among the severely injured (Injury Severity Score 16 or greater) with a hospital length of stay of 5 (PRE) versus 3 days (POST; P = 0.021). A simple, organ system-based checklist can be successfully adopted for daily sign-out round on a busy, multiprovider trauma service. We were able to expedite trauma patient throughput in both ICU and overall hospital stays with a trend toward decreasing mortality. This improved throughput may potentially translate into a cost saving for the hospital.

Evaluation of 8.0-cm needle at the fourth anterior axillary line for needle chest decompression of tension pneumothorax.

BACKGROUND: Five-centimeter needles at the second intercostal space midclavicular line (2MCL) have high failure rates for decompression of tension pneumothorax. This study evaluates 8-cm needles directed at the fourth intercostal space anterior axillary line (4AAL). METHODS: Retrospective radiographic analysis of 100 consecutive trauma patients 18 years or older from January to September 2011. Measurements of chest wall thickness (CWT) and depth to vital structure (DVS) were obtained at 2MCL and 4AAL. 4AAL measurements were taken based on two angles: closest vital structure and perpendicular to the chest wall. Primary outcome measures were radiographic decompression (RD) (defined as CWT < 80 mm) and radiographic noninjury (RNI) (DVS > 80 mm) of 8-cm needles at 4AAL. Secondary outcome measures are effect of angle of entry on RNI at 4AAL, RD and RNI of 8-cm needles at 2MCL, and comparison of 5-cm needles with 8-cm needles at both locations. RESULTS: Eighty-four percent of the patients were male, with mean Injury Severity Score (ISS) of 17.7 (range, 1.0-66.0) and body mass index of 26.8 (16.5-48.4). Mean CWT at 4AAL ranged from 37.6 mm to 39.9 mm, significantly thinner than mean CWT at 2MCL (43.3-46.7 mm). Eight-centimeter needle RD was more than 96% at both 4AAL and 2MCL. Five-centimeter RD ranged from 66% to 81% at all sites. Mean DVS at 4AAL ranged from 91.8 mm to 128.0 mm. RNI at all sites was more than 91% except at left 4AAL, when taken to the closest vital structure (mean DVS, 91.8 mm), with 68% RNI. Perpendicular entry increased DVS to 109.4 mm and subsequent RNI to 91%. Five-centimeter RNI at all sites was more than 99%. CONCLUSION: CWT at 4AAL is significantly thinner than 2MCL. Based on radiographic measurements, 8-cm catheters have a higher chance of pleural decompression when compared with 5-cm catheters. Steeper angle of entry at 4AAL improves 8-cm noninjury rates to more than 91%. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Therapeutic/care management study, level IV.