Accuracy of Pediatric Interventricular Septal Thickness Measurement Obtained Via Point-of-Care Ultrasound: A Prospective Study.

BACKGROUND: Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is a genetic, life-threatening cardiovascular disease that often goes unidentified in pediatric patients. Patients are often asymptomatic and neither history or physical examination are reliable to detect the disease. The only reliable method to diagnose hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is with echocardiography to look at interventricular septal thickness. Emerging literature has shown that cardiac point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) performed by pediatric emergency medicine (PEM) physicians is as effective and accurate compared with cardiac echocardiography performed by pediatric cardiologists. OBJECTIVE: The objective of the study was to determine the diagnostic accuracy of POCUS performed by ultrasound-trained PEM physicians in measuring the interventricular septum end diastole (IVSd) thickness in the pediatric emergency department. METHODS: We conducted a prospective, single-center, observational, diagnostic accuracy study to examine the diagnostic accuracy of POCUS in measuring IVSd thickness in pediatric patients who presented to the pediatric emergency department with symptoms that prompted a cardiac POCUS. Cardiac POCUS findings were interpreted by a PEM physician at the bedside and retrospectively by a pediatric cardiologist. Diagnostic concordance of the measurements obtained by the PEM physician and cardiologist was assessed. RESULTS: Forty-eight patients were enrolled. Median patient age was 13.4 years. There was excellent diagnostic agreement on the measurement of the IVSd thickness between PEM physicians and the pediatric cardiologist (81.25% of cases; 39/48). Disagreement was seen in 18.75% of the cases (9/48). The mean error of disagreement was -0.32, with a 95% confidence interval of -0.37 to -0.28. Overall, the mean error of both agreement and disagreement was -0.046, with 95% confidence interval of -0.08 to -0.01 and P value of 0.008. CONCLUSIONS: Point-of-care ultrasound performed by ultrasound-trained PEM physicians to measure pediatric IVSd thickness has a high diagnostic accuracy with excellent agreement with a pediatric cardiologist.

Child Death in a Resource-Limited Setting: A Simulation Case for Pediatric Residents to Prepare for Global Health Electives.

Introduction: Pediatric residents are increasingly pursuing global health electives. Differences in cultural norms and management around pediatric deaths in resource-limited settings can be emotionally overwhelming for residents. Educational resources are needed to better equip them for handling these stressful situations. We developed a predeparture simulation child death case to prepare pediatric residents for their global health elective. Methods: The simulation module included a clinical case followed by a multidisciplinary structured debriefing. The case featured a 5-year-old, malnourished child in hypovolemic shock who clinically deteriorates and dies. After obtaining a history and performing a physical examination, residents were expected to diagnose severe malnutrition, treat hypovolemic shock, and decide how far to extend resuscitation with the limited resources. Upon returning from abroad, residents were invited to complete a survey on the utility of the simulation case module in preparing for their elective. Results: Twenty-nine residents participated in the simulation case module, and 18 completed the survey. Seventeen agreed or strongly agreed that the simulation module was a useful tool for preparation (Mdn = 4.5 on a 5-point Likert scale). Residents reflected that the simulation module helped manage expectations and provided them with an understanding of the cross-cultural differences in managing pediatric deaths in a resource-limited setting. Discussion: Pediatric residents trained in resource-rich countries do not encounter death often. Postgraduate training programs could consider simulations like this one to prepare such residents for cross-cultural differences in managing pediatric deaths and build resiliency to operate in resource-limited settings.