(Press-News.org) Pediatric researchers have found race- and ethnicity-based disparities in pain management and length of stay among children who came to hospital emergency departments for treatment of abdominal pain. A study team reported on their analysis of a national database of hospital visits in the October issue of Pediatrics.
Overall, black, Hispanic and "other" race children were less likely to receive analgesics than white children. After adjusting for confounders, black patients were less likely to receive any analgesic or a narcotic analgesic than white children. Similarly, among children with severe pain (7 or higher on a 10-point scale), black and "other" race children were less likely to receive analgesics than white children. Black and Hispanic children were more likely to have a prolonged length of stay that white children. There were no significant race or ethnicity disparities identified in documentation of pain score, use of diagnostic procedures, 72-hour return visit or hospital admission.
"By documenting inequities in analgesia and length of stay for abdominal pain in a nationally representative sample of emergency department visits, this study contributes to the growing body of evidence showing disparities in pediatric health care," said Tiffani Johnson, M.D., primary investigator and emergency department physician at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. "Recognizing the existence of racial and ethnic disparities is a critical first step needed to eliminate inequities in care," added Dr. Johnson.
The researchers analyzed data from the 2006-2009 National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey of 2,298 visits by patients aged 21 and younger who presented to emergency departments across the nation with abdominal pain. Pain score, receipt of any analgesics, receipt of analgesics for severe pain and narcotic analgesics were the primary outcomes. Diagnostic tests, length of stay, 72-hour return visit and admission were secondary outcomes.
The patient population was 70.1 percent female; 52.6 percent of the patients were white, 23.5 percent were black, 20.6 percent were Hispanic and 3.3 percent were from other racial/ethnic groups. The mean patient age was 14.5 years old.
"Additional research is still needed to help understand the sources of these disparities, which may include factors at the level of the patient, parent, physician, or healthcare system. This research can inform the development of interventions that seek to eliminate race- and ethnicity-based differences in the management of abdominal pain and other common pediatric complains in the emergency setting," Dr. Johnson said.
###
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (grant HS017587) supported this study.
Dr. Johnson's co-authors were Matthew D. Weaver, MPH, EMT-P, Sonya Borrero, MD, MS, Esa M. Davis, MD, MPH; Larissa Myaskovsky, Ph.D., Noel S. Zuckerbraun, M.D., M.P.H., and Kevin L. Kraemer, M.D., M.Sc., all from the School of Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh.
About The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia: The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia was founded in 1855 as the nation's first pediatric hospital. Through its long-standing commitment to providing exceptional patient care, training new generations of pediatric healthcare professionals and pioneering major research initiatives, Children's Hospital has fostered many discoveries that have benefited children worldwide. Its pediatric research program receives the highest amount of National Institutes of Health funding among all U.S. children's hospitals. In addition, its unique family-centered care and public service programs have brought the 527-bed hospital recognition as a leading advocate for children and adolescents. For more information, visit http://www.chop.edu.
Racial and ethnic disparities exist in ER pain management for children with abdominal pain
2013-09-24
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Researchers publish enormous catalog of more than 300,000 nearby galaxies
2013-09-24
More than 83,000 volunteer citizen scientists. Over 16 million galaxy classifications. Information on more than 300,000 galaxies. This is what you get when you ask the public for help in learning more about our universe.
The project, named Galaxy Zoo 2, is the second phase of a crowdsourcing effort to categorize galaxies in our universe. Researchers say computers are good at automatically measuring properties such as size and color of galaxies, but more challenging characteristics, such as shape and structure, can currently only be determined by the human eye.
An international ...
Alzheimer's progression tracked prior to dementia
2013-09-24
For years, scientists have attempted to understand how Alzheimer's disease harms the brain before memory loss and dementia are clinically detectable. Most researchers think this preclinical stage, which can last a decade or more before symptoms appear, is the critical phase when the disease might be controlled or stopped, possibly preventing the failure of memory and thinking abilities in the first place.
Important progress in this effort is reported in October in Lancet Neurology. Scientists at the Charles F. and Joanne Knight Alzheimer Disease Research Center at Washington ...
Cross-ethnic friendships in urban middle schools make youths feel less vulnerable, safer
2013-09-24
Friendships matter throughout life, and in early adolescence they provide validation and emotional support. Now a new study has found that friendships across ethnic groups in urban middle schools help protect youths from feeling vulnerable, making them feel less lonely and at the same time safer. As the population of children in the United States grows increasingly diverse, this study has implications for how educators oversee student interactions.
The study, by researchers at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) and the University of Groningen in the Netherlands, ...
Responsive interactions key to toddlers' ability to learn language
2013-09-24
Young children readily learn words from their parents, grandparents, and child care providers in live conversations, but learning from video has proven more difficult. A new study questioned why and found that it's the responsiveness of the interactions that's key: When we respond to children in timely and meaningful ways, they learn—even when that response comes from a screen.
The study, by researchers at the University of Washington, Temple University, and the University of Delaware, appears in the journal Child Development.
Three dozen 2-year-olds were randomly assigned ...
Playing with blocks may help children's spatial and math thinking
2013-09-24
Playing with blocks may help preschoolers develop the kinds of skills that support later learning in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), according to a new study by researchers at the University of Delaware and Temple University. And for low-income preschoolers, who lag in spatial skills, such play may be especially important.
The study is published in the journal Child Development.
More than a hundred 3-year-olds of various socioeconomic levels took part in the study. Children who were better at copying block structures were also better at early math, ...
Recommendations guide physicians in treatment of systemic juvenile arthritis
2013-09-24
In the U.S., there are nearly 300,000 children with juvenile arthritis and other rheumatic illnesses according to estimates from the American College of Rheumatology (ACR). For pediatric patients with systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA), effective treatment for this disabling disease is imperative. New treatment recommendations that guide physicians caring for children with systemic JIA are now published in the ACR journals, Arthritis & Rheumatism and Arthritis Care & Research.
Systemic JIA is defined by the International League of Associations for Rheumatology ...
Warning of potential side effects of a product can increase its sales
2013-09-24
Drug ads often warn of serious side effects, from nausea and bleeding to blindness, even death. New research suggests that, rather than scaring consumers away, these warnings can improve consumers' opinions and increase product sales when there is a delay between seeing the ad and deciding to buy or consume the product.
"Messages that warn consumers about potentially harmful side effects — presumably with the intent to nudge them to act more cautiously — can ironically backfire," says psychological scientist Ziv Carmon of INSEAD in Singapore.
Working with Yael Steinhart ...
Patient heal thyself: Solution to treatment for chronic infections could lie in patient's blood
2013-09-23
1. A recent discovery by scientists at A*STAR's Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences (SICS), in close collaboration with researchers at the Singapore Immunology Network (SIgN), provides hope for a new personalised treatment strategy that could use a patient's own blood to treat the infection. This could help treat millions of people living with chronic infections such as HIV, Hepatitis B or Hepatitis C. These findings were published in the August 2013 issue of The Journal of Clinical Investigation.
2. Patients suffering from chronic infections often have to undergo ...
Smile!
2013-09-23
A brighter, better, longer-lasting dental implant may soon be on its way to your dentist's office.
Dental implants are posts, usually made of titanium, that are surgically placed into the jawbone and topped with artificial teeth. More than dentures or bridges, implants mimic the look and feel of natural teeth. While most dental implants are successful, a small percentage fail and either fall out or must be removed. A scientist at Michigan Technological University wants to lower that rate to zero using nanotechnology.
"Dental implants can greatly improve the lives of ...
Propofol discovery may help lead to development of new anesthetics
2013-09-23
New research on the most commonly used anaesthetic drug could help to unravel a long-standing mystery about how it induces a pain-free, sleep-like state.
General anaesthetics are administered to tens of millions of people every year in hospitals, where they are used to sedate patients undergoing surgery. Despite this, scientists have yet to understand how the drug interacts with its targets in brain cells to achieve this effect.
Following years of research on propofol, which has become the most commonly used anaesthetic since it was introduced in the 1980s, researchers ...