Pediatric outpatient consultation at the emergency department of a university hospital

Abstract

To determine the epidemiological profile of pediatric consultations treated at the emergency department (ED) is essential for planning processes of medical care and to guide education programs and research. To describe the characteristics of the child population and the main reasons for consultation (RFC) seen in a pediatric emergency service. A retrospective, descriptive clinical study was conducted regarding the visits to the Children's Emergency Service of an academic hospital in Santiago, for a period of twelve months. RFC were analyzed by age group, severity, seasonality, disposition and frequency of recurrent visits. 24,531 pediatric consultations were evaluated, 51.9% were male (n=12,720). The age of the patients ranged between one day old and 15 years, with a median age of 36.5 months. 1.5% of patients were newborns (NB), 17.6% were infants (n=4,326), 51.9% were preschoolers (n=12,725) and 29% were school children (n=7,118). Major RFC were fever (n=6,643, 28.2%), gastrointestinal symptoms (n=5,606, 23.8%) and respiratory symptoms (n=5,018, 21.3%), which did not differ significantly according to gender. Most patients (95.5%) were sent to their homes. The risk of hospitalization was more elevated in NB and in those with jaundice (OR=7.20, 95% CI 3.12 to 16.6), neurological symptoms (OR=6.90, 95% CI 4.60 -10.4) and poisoning (OR=6.45, 95% CI 2.82 to 14.7). About 4% were repeat visits, especially in the NB group. The epidemiological profile of pediatric consultations seen at the ED was similar to that described in previous studies. However, a lower rate of hospitalization was found even though the patients had similar risk profile.