Racial and Ethnic Disparities and Bias in the Evaluation and Reporting of Abusive Head Trauma

Variability in Occult Injury Screening Among Siblings/Household Contacts of Physical Abuse Victims

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this study is to examine radiologic occult injury screening performance/yield among contacts presenting for precautionary medical assessments and assess factors associated with deferred screening.

METHODS

Data were collected retrospectively from charts of contacts younger than 8 years presenting for precautionary evaluation to a level 1 pediatric emergency department January 1, 2018 to March 31, 2023. Demographics, radiologic performance/yield, physical examination, social work-based psychosocial assessment, reasons for deferred imaging, and diagnostic codes were abstracted. Descriptive statistics and χ 2 analysis are reported.

RESULTS

Three hundred ninety contacts were identified; 364 (93.3%) were biological siblings. Most (276, 70.8%) were 2 to 8 years old. Statistically significant relationships were identified with age, insurance, and hospital social work assessment and screening. Thirty-four infants (54%) underwent neuroimaging; no studies were abnormal. Of 114 contacts, <2 years old, 97 (85%) underwent skeletal survey (SS); 9 (9%) SS were abnormal. Twenty-seven (24%) returned for follow-up SS; 4 (14.8%) were abnormal. For 2 contacts, an abnormal initial SS was refuted by follow-up imaging. Physical examinations were abnormal for 11% of contacts. Reasons for deferred imaging included contact well appearance, caregiver concerns, and clinician disagreement with indications. Encounter International Classification of Diseases codes varied, commonly reflecting nonspecific screening assessments.

CONCLUSIONS

Despite national clinical practice guidelines, studies of abusive injury prevalence and radiologic yield among at-risk contacts exposed to unsafe environments are few. Screening evaluations inclusive of physical examination and radiologic studies identify abuse concerns among at-risk contacts. Further study of factors impacting radiologic screening decisions is needed. Considerations to advance epidemiologic research include standardized diagnostic coding and prospective assessment of radiologic yield.

A Narrative Review Investigating Practices and Disparities in Child Abuse Amongst United States Pediatric Trauma Patients & Associated Outcomes

INTRODUCTION

Although non-accidental trauma continues to be a leading cause of morbidity and mortality among children in the United States, the underlying factors leading to NAT are not well characterized. We aim to review reporting practices, clinical outcomes, and associated disparities among pediatric trauma patients experiencing NAT.

METHODS

A literature search utilizing PubMed, Google Scholar, EMBASE, ProQuest, and Cochrane was conducted from database inception until April 6, 2023. This review includes studies that assessed pediatric (age <18) trauma patients treated for NAT in the United States emergency departments. The evaluated outcome was in-hospital mortality rates stratified by race, age, sex, insurance status, and socioeconomic advantage.

RESULTS

The literature search yielded 2641 initial articles, and after screening and applying inclusion and exclusion criteria, 15 articles remained. African American pediatric trauma patients diagnosed with NAT had higher mortality odds than white patients, even when adjusting for comparable injury severity. Children older than 12 mo experienced higher mortality rates compared to those younger than 12 mo, although some studies did not find a significant association between age and mortality. Uninsured insurance status was associated with the highest mortality rate, followed by Medicaid and private insurance. No significant association between sex and mortality or socioeconomic advantage and mortality was observed.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings showed higher in-hospital mortality among African American pediatric trauma patients experiencing child abuse, and in patients 12 mo or older. Medicaid and uninsured pediatric patients faced higher mortality odds from their abuse compared to privately insured patients.

Developing and Testing the Usability of a Novel Child Abuse Clinical Decision Support System: Mixed Methods Study

BACKGROUND

Despite the impact of physical abuse on children, it is often underdiagnosed, especially among children evaluated in emergency departments (EDs). Electronic clinical decision support (CDS) can improve the recognition of child physical abuse.

OBJECTIVE

We aimed to develop and test the usability of a natural language processing-based child abuse CDS system, known as the Child Abuse Clinical Decision Support (CA-CDS), to alert ED clinicians about high-risk injuries suggestive of abuse in infants' charts.

METHODS

Informed by available evidence, a multidisciplinary team, including an expert in user design, developed the CA-CDS prototype that provided evidence-based recommendations for the evaluation and management of suspected child abuse when triggered by documentation of a high-risk injury. Content was customized for medical versus nursing providers and initial versus subsequent exposure to the alert. To assess the usability of and refine the CA-CDS, we interviewed 24 clinicians from 4 EDs about their interactions with the prototype. Interview transcripts were coded and analyzed using conventional content analysis.

RESULTS

Overall, 5 main categories of themes emerged from the study. CA-CDS benefits included providing an extra layer of protection, providing evidence-based recommendations, and alerting the entire clinical ED team. The user-centered, workflow-compatible design included soft-stop alert configuration, editable and automatic documentation, and attention-grabbing formatting. Recommendations for improvement included consolidating content, clearer design elements, and adding a hyperlink with additional resources. Barriers to future implementation included alert fatigue, hesitancy to change, and concerns regarding documentation. Facilitators of future implementation included stakeholder buy-in, provider education, and sharing the test characteristics. On the basis of user feedback, iterative modifications were made to the prototype.

CONCLUSIONS

With its user-centered design and evidence-based content, the CA-CDS can aid providers in the real-time recognition and evaluation of infant physical abuse and has the potential to reduce the number of missed cases.

Primary Care Interventions to Prevent Child Maltreatment: US Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement

Importance

Child maltreatment, which includes child abuse and neglect, can have profound effects on health, development, survival, and well-being throughout childhood and adulthood. The prevalence of child maltreatment in the US is uncertain and likely underestimated. In 2021, an estimated 600 000 children were identified by Child Protective Services as experiencing abuse or neglect and an estimated 1820 children died of abuse and neglect.

Objective

The US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) commissioned a systematic review to evaluate benefits and harms of primary care-feasible or referable behavioral counseling interventions to prevent child maltreatment in children and adolescents younger than 18 years without signs or symptoms of maltreatment.

Population

Children and adolescents younger than 18 years who do not have signs or symptoms of or known exposure to maltreatment.

Evidence Assessment

The USPSTF concludes that the evidence is insufficient to determine the balance of benefits and harms of primary care interventions to prevent child maltreatment in children and adolescents younger than 18 years without signs or symptoms of or known exposure to maltreatment.

Recommendation

The USPSTF concludes that the current evidence is insufficient to assess the balance of benefits and harms of primary care interventions to prevent child maltreatment. (I statement).

Child Protection System Interactions for Children With Positive Urine Screens for Illicit Drugs

Importance

Young children are ingesting illicit drugs at increased rates, but it is unknown what the associated child protection system (CPS) responses are when a child tests positive.

Objective

To document the child protection system involvement and the characteristics of children who test positive for illicit substances.

Design, Setting, and Participants

This retrospective cross-sectional study linked medical discharge and child protection system administrative data. The setting was Rady Children's Hospital San Diego, a free-standing pediatric hospital in California. Participants included all emergency department and inpatient medical encounters involving children aged 12 years or younger with a positive urine drug test between 2016 and 2021. Statistical analysis was performed from February 2023 to January 2024.

Exposure

Drug type, including amphetamines, barbiturates, benzodiazepines, cannabis, cocaine, fentanyl, opiates, and phencyclidine.

Main Measures and Outcomes

CPS responses associated with the medical encounter including reports, substantiations, case openings, and out-of-home placements.

Results

A total of 511 emergency department and inpatient medical encounters involving children had a positive drug test (262 [51.3%] were female; 309 [60.5%] were age 6 years or younger; fewer than 10 [<3.0%] were American Indian or Alaska Native; 252 [49.3%] were Hispanic [any race], 20 [3.9%] were non-Hispanic Asian, 56 [11.0%] were non-Hispanic Black, 143 [28.0%] were non-Hispanic White, 36 [7.0%] had other or unknown race and ethnicity; 233 [43.6%] had a CPS report prior to the medical encounter). Following the positive screen, 244 (47.7%) were reported to child protection, and 61 (11.9%) were placed out-of-home within 30 days. Mean (SD) quarterly counts of encounters with positive drug tests doubled after the COVID-19 pandemic onset (32.9 [9.8]) compared with prior to the pandemic onset (16.5 [4.7]); for encounters positive for cannabis, mean (SD) quarterly counts were 3 times as high after the pandemic onset than prior (16.6 [4.7] vs 5.7 [2.9]). Encounters for children under age 1 were significantly more likely to have associated child protection reports (relative risk [RR], 2.91 [95% CI, 2.21-3.83]) and child protection case openings (RR, 1.71 [95% CI, 1.07-2.72]) than encounters involving older children.

Conclusions and Relevance

In this cross-sectional study of emergency department and inpatient medical encounters, less than half of children with positive urine drug screens were reported to CPS; out-of-home placements were uncommon. With increased encounters for positive drug tests, it is unclear what services these children and families are receiving.

Racial and ethnic disparities in diagnostic imaging for child physical abuse

IMPORTANCE

Racial bias may affect occult injury testing decisions for children with concern for abuse.

OBJECTIVES

To determine the association of race on occult injury testing decisions at children's hospitals.

DESIGN

In this retrospective study, we measured disparities in: (1) the proportion of visits for which indicated diagnostic imaging studies for child abuse were obtained; (2) the proportion of positive tests.

SETTING

The Pediatric Health Information System (PHIS) administrative database encompassing 49 tertiary children's hospitals during 2017-2019.

PARTICIPANTS

We built three cohorts based on guidelines for diagnostic testing for child abuse: infants with traumatic brain injury (TBI; n = 1952), children <2 years old with extremity fracture (n = 20,842), and children <2 years old who received a skeletal survey (SS; n = 13,081).

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES

For each group we measured: (1) the odds of receiving a specific guideline-recommended diagnostic imaging study; (2) among those with the indicated imaging study, the odds of an abuse-related injury diagnosis. We calculated both unadjusted and adjusted odds ratios (AOR) by race and ethnicity, adjusting for sex, age in months, payor, and hospital.

RESULTS

In infants with TBI, the odds of receiving a SS did not differ by racial group. Among those with a SS, the odds of rib fracture were higher for non-Hispanic Black than Hispanic (AOR 2.05 (CI 1.31, 3.2)) and non-Hispanic White (AOR 1.57 (CI 1.11, 2.32)) patients. In children with extremity fractures, the odds of receiving a SS were higher for non-Hispanic Black than Hispanic and non-Hispanic White patients (AOR 1.97 (CI 1.74, 2.23)); (AOR 1.17 (CI 1.05, 1.31)), respectively, and lower for Hispanic than non-Hispanic White patients (AOR 0.59 (CI 0.53, 0.67)). Among those receiving a SS, the rate of rib fractures did not differ by race. In children with skeletal surveys, the odds of receiving neuroimaging did not differ by race. Among those with neuroimaging, the odds of a non-fracture, non-concussion TBI were lower in non-Hispanic Black than Hispanic patients (AOR 0.7 (CI 0.57, 0.86)) and were higher among Hispanic than non-Hispanic White patients (AOR 1.23 (CI 1.02, 1.47)).

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE

We did not identify a consistent pattern of race-based disparities in occult injury testing when considering the concurrent yield for abuse-related injuries.

Pilot study using machine learning to improve estimation of physical abuse prevalence

BACKGROUND

International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-10-CM) codes have been shown to underestimate physical abuse prevalence. Machine learning models are capable of efficiently processing a wide variety of data and may provide better estimates of abuse.

OBJECTIVE

To achieve proof of concept applying machine learning to identify codes associated with abuse.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

Children <5 years, presenting to the emergency department with an injury or abuse-specific ICD-10-CM code and evaluated by the child protection team (CPT) from 2016 to 2020 at a large Midwestern children's hospital.

METHODS

The Pediatric Health Information System (PHIS) and the CPT administrative databases were used to identify the study sample and injury and abuse-specific ICD-10-CM codes. Subjects were divided into abused and non-abused groups based on the CPT's evaluation. A LASSO logistic regression model was constructed using ICD-10-CM codes and patient age to identify children likely to be diagnosed by the CPT as abused. Performance was evaluated using repeated cross-validation (CV) and Reciever Operator Characteristic curve.

RESULTS

We identified 2028 patients evaluated by the CPT with 512 diagnosed as abused. Using diagnosis codes and patient age, our model was able to accurately identify patients with confirmed PA (mean CV AUC = 0.87). Performance was still weaker for patients without existing ICD codes for abuse (mean CV AUC = 0.81).

CONCLUSIONS

We built a model that employs injury ICD-10-CM codes and age to improve accuracy of distinguishing abusive from non-abusive injuries. This pilot modelling endeavor is a steppingstone towards improving population-level estimates of abuse.

Public Benefit Programs and Differential Associations With Child Maltreatment by Race and Ethnicity

Importance

Public benefit programs, including state spending on local, state, and federal-state partnership programs, have consistently been associated with overall reductions in child protective services (CPS) involvement. Inequities in eligibility and access to benefit programs may contribute to varying associations by race and ethnicity.

Objective

To determine whether associations between state spending on benefit programs and rates of CPS investigations differ by race and ethnicity.

Design, Setting, and Participants

This cross-sectional ecological study used repeated state-level measures of child maltreatment from the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System and population estimates from the US Census Bureau for all Black, Hispanic, and White children. All 50 US states from October 1, 2009, through September 30, 2019 (fiscal years 2010-2019), were included. Data were collected and analyzed from May 13, 2022, to March 2, 2023.

Exposures

Annual state spending on benefit programs per person living below the federal poverty limit, total and by the following subcategories: (1) cash, housing, and in-kind; (2) housing infrastructure; (3) child care assistance; (4) refundable earned income tax credit; and (5) medical assistance programs.

Main Outcomes and Measures

Race- and ethnicity-specific rates of CPS investigations. Generalized estimating equations, with repeated measures of states, an interaction between race and spending, and estimated incidence rate ratios (IRRs) and 95% CIs for incremental changes in spending of US $1000 per person living below the federal poverty limit were calculated after adjustment for federal spending, race- and ethnicity-specific child poverty rate, and year.

Results

A total of 493 state-year observations were included in the analysis. The association between total spending and CPS investigations differed significantly by race and ethnicity: there was an inverse association between total state spending and CPS investigations for White children (IRR, 0.94 [95% CI, 0.91-0.98]) but not for Black children (IRR, 0.98 [95% CI, 0.94-1.02]) or Hispanic children (IRR, 0.99 [95% CI, 0.95-1.03]) (P = .02 for interaction). Likewise, inverse associations were present for only White children with respect to all subcategories of state spending and differed significantly from Black and Hispanic children for all subcategories except the refundable earned income tax credit (eg, IRR for medical assistance programs for White children, 0.89 [95% CI, 0.82-0.96]; P = .005 for race and spending interaction term).

Conclusions and Relevance

These results raise concerns that benefit programs may add relative advantages for White children compared with Black and Hispanic children and contribute to racial and ethnic disparities in CPS investigations. States' eligibility criteria and distribution practices should be examined to promote equitable effects on adverse child outcomes.

A scoping review of research on potential impact of implicit bias in healthcare settings for children with acquired brain injuries

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE

Acquired brain injury (ABI) is a leading cause of disability in children and adolescents. Implicit biases within pediatric ABI healthcare settings may exert negative effects on clinical interactions and medical decision-making processes. This study aimed to conduct a scoping review of current research that examines the potential impact of implicit biases in such healthcare settings for children with ABI.

RESEARCH METHOD/DESIGN

Following PRISMA-ScR guidelines, a search among five databases (CINAHL, Cochrane CENTRAL, PubMed, PsycArticles, and PsycInfo) was conducted, followed by abstract/full-text screening and data extraction. Main characteristics of the included studies, including research design, relevance to implicit biases, and public health impact were synthesized. The risk of bias of included studies was assessed.

RESULTS

Out of the 203 articles returned from the literature search, a total of three studies met the inclusion criteria for the present review. All studies examined the relevance of racial/ethnic biases for evaluating abusive head trauma or nonaccidental trauma. The included studies had an overall unclear to low risk of biases.

CONCLUSIONS/IMPLICATIONS

This scoping review identified scarce but emerging evidence of the presence and detrimental impact of potential implicit biases on the access and quality of care received by children with ABI. More research is needed to examine the causes, process mechanisms, and consequences of implicit biases in pediatric ABI healthcare settings. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Predictors of Making a Referral to Child Protective Services Prior to Expert Consultation

OBJECTIVE

Suspicion for child abuse is influenced by implicit biases. Evaluation by a Child Abuse Pediatrician (CAP) may reduce avoidable child protective services (CPS) referrals. Our objective was to investigate the association of patient demographic, social and clinical characteristics with CPS referral before consultation by a CAP (preconsultation referral).

METHODS

Children<5years-old undergoing in-person CAP consultation for suspected physical abuse from February 2021 through April 2022 were identified in CAPNET, a multicenter child abuse research network. Marginal standardization implemented with logistic regression analysis examined hospital-level variation and identified demographic, social, and clinical factors associated with preconsultation referral adjusting for CAP's final assessment of abuse likelihood.

RESULTS

Among the 61% (1005/1657) of cases with preconsultation referral, the CAP consultant had low concern for abuse in 38% (384/1005). Preconsultation referrals ranged from 25% to 78% of cases across 10 hospitals (P < .001). In multivariable analyses, preconsultation referral was associated with public insurance, caregiver history of CPS involvement, history of intimate partner violence, higher CAP level of concern for abuse, hospital transfer, and near-fatality (all P < .05). The difference in preconsultation referral prevalence for children with public versus private insurance was significant for children with low CAP concern for abuse (52% vs 38%) but not those with higher concern for abuse (73% vs 73%), (P = .023 for interaction of insurance and abuse likelihood category). There were no differences in preconsultation referral based on race or ethnicity.

CONCLUSIONS

Biases based on socioeconomic status and social factors may impact decisions to refer to CPS before CAP consultation.

Natural Language Processing - A Surveillance Stepping Stone to Identify Child Abuse

OBJECTIVE

We aimed to refine a natural language processing (NLP) algorithm that identified injuries associated with child abuse and identify areas in which integration into a real-time clinical decision support (CDS) tool may improve clinical care.

METHODS

We applied an NLP algorithm in "silent mode" to all emergency department (ED) provider notes between July 2021 and December 2022 (n = 353) at 1 pediatric and 8 general EDs. We refined triggers for the NLP, assessed adherence to clinical guidelines, and evaluated disparities in degree of evaluation by examining associations between demographic variables and abuse evaluation or reporting to child protective services.

RESULTS

Seventy-three cases falsely triggered the NLP, often due to errors in interpreting linguistic context. We identified common false-positive scenarios and refined the algorithm to improve NLP specificity. Adherence to recommended evaluation standards for injuries defined by nationally accepted clinical guidelines was 63%. There were significant demographic differences in evaluation and reporting based on presenting ED type, insurance status, and race and ethnicity.

CONCLUSIONS

Analysis of an NLP algorithm in "silent mode" allowed for refinement of the algorithm and highlighted areas in which real-time CDS may help ED providers identify and pursue appropriate evaluation of injuries associated with child physical abuse.

Child Maltreatment

Child maltreatment is associated with significant morbidity, and prevention is a public health priority. Given evidence of interpersonal and structural racism in child protective service assessment and response, equity must be prioritized for both acute interventions and preventive initiatives aimed at supporting children and their families. Clinicians who care for children are well positioned to support families, and the patient-centered medical home, in collaboration with community-based services, has unique potential as a locus for maltreatment prevention services. Clinicians can advocate for policies that support families and decrease the risk of child maltreatment.

Evaluation of Racial Disparities in Suspected Child Abuse among Insured Children with Head Injury

Previous studies demonstrate racial disparities in child abuse evaluations even after controlling for health insurance coverage. We conducted a cross-sectional study using the Military Health System Data Repository (MDR) of Military Health System (MHS) beneficiaries born between fiscal years 2016 and 2018 to evaluate racial disparities and other factors in the suspicion of child abuse. We observed beneficiaries for 2.5 years after birth and assessed the incidence of head injury using diagnostic codes. Among children with head injury codes, we performed a multivariable logistic regression analysis to measure the association between race and the concurrent use of the diagnostic code for suspected child abuse (SCA) or for the performance of a skeletal survey. There were 195,893 infants included and 45,269 (23.1%) underwent evaluations for head injury. Less than one percent (n = 424) concurrently had the diagnostic code for SCA or a skeletal survey performed within 2 weeks of the head injury evaluation. When controlling for other factors, race was not associated with SCA. Higher military rank was independently associated with decreased odds of SCA. Racial disparities in SCA may be mitigated in the MHS, and further evaluation is needed. Military rank could be a factor in SCA disparities and warrants further study.

Implicit Bias and Patient Care: Mitigating Bias, Preventing Harm

Introduction

Simulation is a valuable and novel tool in the expanding approach to racism and bias education for medical practitioners. We present a simulation case focused on identifying and addressing the implicit bias of a consultant to teach bias mitigation skills and limit harm to patients and families.

Methods

Learners were presented with a case of a classic toddler's fracture in an African American child. The learners interacted with an orthopedic resident who insisted on child welfare involvement, with nonspecific and increasingly biased concerns about the child/family. The learners were expected to identify that this case was not concerning for nonaccidental trauma and that the orthopedic resident was demonstrating bias. They were expected to communicate with both the resident and the parent effectively to defuse the situation and prevent harm from reaching the family. A debrief and an anonymous survey followed the case.

Results

Seventy-five learners participated, including pediatric and emergency medicine residents, fellows, attendings, and medical students. After the case, the majority of learners expressed confidence that they could recognize racial bias in the care of a patient (90%), ensure patient care was not influenced by racial bias (88%), and utilize a tool to frame a concern about bias (79%).

Discussion

Participants felt that this simulation was relevant and effective and overall left the experience feeling confident in their abilities to identify and manage racially biased patient care. This anti-racist simulation offers an important skill-building opportunity that has been well received by learners.

State Policies on Child Maltreatment and Racial Disproportionality

Over the past several decades researchers have documented disproportionality for Black families across multiple decision-making points within the child welfare system. Yet, few studies have examined how specific state policies may impact disproportionality across decision points. The racial disproportionality index (RDI) was calculated for Black children in each state and Washington DC (N = 51) based on the proportion of children who were received a referral to CPS, a substantiated investigation, or entered foster care. A series of bivariate analyses (one-way ANOVAs; independent sample t-tests) were used to explore the relationship between the RDI and these decision points. Further analyses were conducted between the RDI and state policies (e.g., child maltreatment definitions, mandated reporting, and alternative response). Our results suggest there is an overrepresentation of Black children in CPS across the three decision points. This overrepresentation continues with specific state policies such as a state using harsh punishment in their definition of child maltreatment. Recommendations are provided for policy and research, including a suggestion for further exploration of state policies and county-level disproportionality indexes.

The Impact of an Emergency Department Bruising Pathway on Disparities in Child Abuse Evaluation

OBJECTIVES

Previous research has shown racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic disparities in provider medical evaluations and reporting to child protective services (CPS) and law enforcement (LE) for cases of suspected child physical abuse. Our hospital standardized evaluation and reporting of high-risk bruising using a clinical pathway. We aimed to assess whether standardization impacted disparity.

METHODS

We performed a retrospective observational study including children evaluated in the emergency department who had a social work consult for concern for child abuse or neglect between June 2012 and December 2019. From this group, we identified children with high-risk bruising. We compared outcomes (receipt of skeletal survey, CPS report, or LE report) before and after implementation of a standard bruising evaluation pathway to determine how the intervention changed practice among various racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups.

RESULTS

During the study period, 2129 children presented to the ED and received a social work consult for child abuse or neglect. Of these, 333 had high-risk bruising. Children without private insurance had a higher risk of having a CPS (adjusted relative risk, 1.32; 95% confidence interval, 1.09-1.60) or LE (adjusted relative risk, 1.48; 95% confidence interval, 1.11-1.97) report prepathway, but not after pathway implementation. No significant associations were seen for race or ethnicity.

CONCLUSIONS

A standardized clinical pathway for identification and evaluation of high-risk bruising may help to decrease socioeconomic disparities in reporting high-risk bruising. Larger studies are needed to fully evaluate disparities in assessment and reporting of child abuse.

Impact of standardization on racial and socioeconomic disparities in non-accidental trauma evaluations in infants in a pediatric emergency department

BACKGROUND

Studies have illustrated racial and socioeconomic disparities in evaluation of non-accidental trauma (NAT). We aimed to investigate how implementation of a standardized NAT guideline in a pediatric emergency department (PED) impacted racial and socioeconomic disparities in NAT evaluation.

RESULTS

1199 patients (541 pre- and 658 post-guideline) were included for analysis. Pre-guideline, patients with governmental insurance were more likely than those with commercial insurance to have a social work (SW) consult completed (57.4% vs. 34.7%, p < 0.001) and a Child Protective Services (CPS) report filed (33.4% vs. 13.8%, p < 0.001). Post-guideline, these disparities were still present. There were no differences in race, ethnicity, insurance type, or social deprivation index (SDI) in rates of complete NAT evaluations pre- or post-guideline implementation. Overall adherence to all guideline elements increased from 19.0% before guideline implementation to 53.2% after (p < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

Implementation of a standardized NAT guideline led to significant increase in complete NAT evaluations. Guideline implementation was not associated with elimination of pre-existing disparities in SW consults or CPS reporting between insurance groups.

Methodologic Approaches for Using Electronic Medical Records to Identify Experiences of Violence in Transgender and Cisgender People: Closing the Gap Between Diagnostic Coding and Lived Experiences

BACKGROUND

Transgender people experience extreme rates of violence and the electronic medical record (EMR) remains a mostly untapped resource to study the medical sequelae of such experiences.

OBJECTIVES

To develop and test a method for identifying experiences of violence using EMR data.

RESEARCH DESIGN

Cross-sectional study utilizing EMR data.

PEOPLE

Transgender and cisgender people seen at a regional referral center in Upstate New York.

MEASURES

We tested the utility of keyword searches and structured data queries to identify specific types of violence at various ages and in various contexts among cohorts of transgender and cisgender people. We compared the effectiveness of keyword searches to diagnosis codes and a screening question, "Are you safe at home?" using McNemar's test. We compared the prevalence of various types of violence between transgender and cisgender cohorts using the χ 2 test of independence.

RESULTS

Of the transgender cohort, 47% had experienced some type of violence versus 14% of the cisgender cohort (χ 2P value <0.001). Keywords were significantly more effective than structured data at identifying violence among both cohorts (McNemar P values all <0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Transgender people experience extreme amounts of violence throughout their lives, which is better identified and studied using keyword searches than structured EMR data. Policies are urgently needed to stop violence against transgender people. Interventions are also needed to ensure safe documentation of violence in EMRs to improve care across settings and aid research to develop and implement effective interventions.

Child Abuse Pediatrics Research Network: The CAPNET Core Data Project

OBJECTIVE

Examine the epidemiology of subspecialty physical abuse evaluations within CAPNET, a multicenter child abuse pediatrics research network.

METHODS

We conducted a cross-sectional study of children <10 years old who underwent an evaluation (in-person or remote) by a child abuse pediatrician (CAP) due to concerns for physical abuse at ten CAPNET hospital systems from February 2021 through December 2021.

RESULTS

Among 3667 patients with 3721 encounters, 69.4% were <3 years old; 44.3% <1 year old, 59.1% male; 27.1% Black; 57.8% White, 17.0% Hispanic; and 71.0 % had public insurance. The highest level of care was outpatient/emergency department in 60.7%, inpatient unit in 28.0% and intensive care in 11.4%. CAPs performed 79.1% in-person consultations and 20.9% remote consultations. Overall, the most frequent injuries were bruises (35.2%), fractures (29.0%), and traumatic brain injuries (TBI) (16.2%). Abdominal (1.2%) and spine injuries (1.6%) were uncommon. TBI was diagnosed in 30.6% of infants but only 8.4% of 1-year old children. In 68.2% of cases a report to child protective services (CPS) was made prior to CAP consultation; in 12.4% a report was made after CAP consultation. CAPs reported no concern for abuse in 43.0% of cases and mild/intermediate concern in 22.3%. Only 14.2% were categorized as definite abuse.

CONCLUSION

Most children in CAPNET were <3 years old with bruises, fractures, or intracranial injuries. CPS reports were frequently made prior to CAP consultation. CAPs had a low level of concern for abuse in majority of cases.

Health Inequities in Pediatric Trauma

This review article highlights the disparities evident in pediatric trauma care in the United States. Social determinants of health play a significant role in key aspects of trauma care including access to care, gun violence, child abuse, head trauma, burn injuries, and orthopedic trauma. We review the recent literature as it relates to these topics. The findings from these recent studies emphasize the important principle that trauma care for children should be designed with a focus on equity for all children.

Disparities in detection of suspected child abuse

BACKGROUND

Child abuse is a significant cause of injury and death among children, but accurate identification is often challenging. This study aims to assess whether racial disparities exist in the identification of child abuse.

METHODS

The 2010-2014 and 2016-2017 National Trauma Data Bank was queried for trauma patients ages 1-17. Using ICD-9CM and ICD-10CM codes, children with injuries consistent with child abuse were identified and analyzed by race.

RESULTS

Between 2010-2014 and 2016-2017, 798,353 patients were included in NTDB. Suspected child abuse victims (SCA) accounted for 7903 (1%) patients. Of these, 51% were White, 33% Black, 1% Asian, 0.3% Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander, 2% American Indian, and 12% other race. Black patients were disproportionately overrepresented, composing 12% of the US population, but 33% of SCA patients (p < 0.001). Although White SCA patients were more severely injured (ISS 16-24: 20% vs 16%, p < 0.01) and had higher in-hospital mortality (9% vs. 6%, p = 0.01), Black SCA patients were hospitalized longer (7.2 ± 31.4 vs. 6.2 ± 9.9 days, p < 0.01) despite controlling for ISS (1-15: 4. 5.7 ± 35.7 vs. 4.2 ± 6.2 days, p < 0.01). In multivariate regression, Black children continued to have longer lengths of stay despite controlling for ISS and insurance type.

CONCLUSIONS

Utilizing a nationally representative dataset, Black children were disproportionately identified as potential victims of abuse. They were also subjected to longer hospitalizations, despite milder injuries. Further studies are needed to better understand the etiology of the observed trends and whether they reflect potential underlying unconscious or conscious biases of mandated reporters.

TYPE OF STUDY

Treatment study.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

III.

Racial disparities in emergency medicine: Implementation of a novel educational module in the emergency medicine clerkship

Objectives

Despite decades of literature recognizing racial disparities (RDs) in emergency medicine (EM), published curricula dedicated to addressing them are sparse. We present details of our novel RD curriculum for EM clerkships and its educational outcomes.

Methods

We created a 30-min interactive didactic module on the topic designed for third- and fourth-year medical students enrolled in our EM clerkships. Through a modified Delphi process, education faculty and content experts in RD developed a 10-question multiple-choice test of knowledge on RD that the students completed immediately prior to and 2 weeks following the activity. Students also completed a Likert-style learner satisfaction survey. Median pre- and posttest scores were compared using a paired Wilcoxon signed-rank test and presented using medians and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Satisfaction survey responses were dichotomized into favorable and neutral/not favorable.

Results

For the 36 students who completed the module, the median pretest score was 40% (95% CI 36%-50%) and the posttest score was 70% (95% CI 60%-70%) with a p-value of <0.001. Thirty-five of the 36 students improved on the posttest with a mean increase of 24.2% (95% CI 20.2-28.2). The satisfaction survey also showed a positive response, with at least 83% of participants responding favorably to all statements (overall mean favorable response 93%, 95% CI 90%-96%).ConclusionsThis EM-based module on RD led to improvement in students' knowledge on the topic and positive reception by participants. This is a feasible option for educating students in EM on the topic of RD.

Black and Latinx Primary Caregiver Considerations for Developing and Implementing a Machine Learning-Based Model for Detecting Child Abuse and Neglect With Implications for Racial Bias Reduction: Qualitative Interview Study With Primary Caregivers

BACKGROUND

Child abuse and neglect, once viewed as a social problem, is now an epidemic. Moreover, health providers agree that existing stereotypes may link racial and social class issues to child abuse. The broad adoption of electronic health records (EHRs) in clinical settings offers a new avenue for addressing this epidemic. To reduce racial bias and improve the development, implementation, and outcomes of machine learning (ML)-based models that use EHR data, it is crucial to involve marginalized members of the community in the process.

OBJECTIVE

This study elicited Black and Latinx primary caregivers' viewpoints regarding child abuse and neglect while living in underserved communities to highlight considerations for designing an ML-based model for detecting child abuse and neglect in emergency departments (EDs) with implications for racial bias reduction and future interventions.

METHODS

We conducted a qualitative study using in-depth interviews with 20 Black and Latinx primary caregivers whose children were cared for at a single pediatric tertiary-care ED to gain insights about child abuse and neglect and their experiences with health providers.

RESULTS

Three central themes were developed in the coding process: (1) primary caregivers' perspectives on the definition of child abuse and neglect, (2) primary caregivers' experiences with health providers and medical documentation, and (3) primary caregivers' perceptions of child protective services.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings highlight essential considerations from primary caregivers for developing an ML-based model for detecting child abuse and neglect in ED settings. This includes how to define child abuse and neglect from a primary caregiver lens. Miscommunication between patients and health providers can potentially lead to a misdiagnosis, and therefore, have a negative impact on medical documentation. Additionally, the outcome and application of the ML-based models for detecting abuse and neglect may cause additional harm than expected to the community. Further research is needed to validate these findings and integrate them into creating an ML-based model.

Structural evaluation of child physical abuse in trauma: Social determinants of health at the population level

PURPOSE

Child physical abuse (CPA) is closely linked to social factors like insurance status with limited evaluation at a structural population-level. This study evaluates the role of social determinants of health within the built environment on CPA.

METHODS

A single-institution retrospective review of pediatric trauma patients was conducted between January 2016 and December 2020. Patient address was geocoded to the census-tract level. Socioeconomic metrics, including poverty rate, supermarket access and Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) were estimated from the Food Access Research Atlas. Univariate and multivariable regression analyses were conducted to compare demographics and outcomes.

RESULTS

Of 3,540 patients, 317 (9.0%) had concern for physical abuse reported in the registry. CPA patients were younger (7.5 vs 9.6 years, p<0.0001) and more often Black (37.0%, N = 117 vs 23.5%, N = 753; p<0.0001). CPA had higher injury severity scores (ISS) (7.9 vs 5.8, p<0.0001) and longer length of stay (5.3 vs 2.9 days, p<0.0001). CPA had higher Medicaid (73.0%, N = 232 vs 53.8%, N = 1748, p<0.0001) and SVI (0.65 vs 0.59, p<0.0001) with lower median income ($52,100 vs $56,100, p<0.0001) and more low-food access tracts (59.6% vs 53.6%, p = 0.06). Combined low-income and low-food access populations showed widened disparities (40.0% vs 28.9%, p = 0.0002). On multivariate analysis, CPA was associated with poverty (OR 2.3, 95% CI [0.979, 3.60], p = 0.0006), low-access Black share (OR 3.3, 95% CI [1.18, 5.47], p = 0.002) and urban designation (OR 1.5, 95% CI [1.13, 1.87], p = 0.004).

CONCLUSION

The built-environment and population-level social determinants of health are related to child physical abuse and should influence advocacy and prevention.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Level III.

TYPE OF STUDY

Retrospective.

An integrated review of social information processing as a mechanism in the association between maltreatment and depression among youth of color

BACKGROUND

Child maltreatment is a potent risk factor for depression across the life course, with maltreatment and depression demonstrated to disproportionately impact youth of color. Despite evidence for mechanisms (e.g., social information processing; SIP) accounting for the effects of maltreatment on youth broadly, pathways of risk for depression among maltreated youth of color specifically remain largely under-investigated.

OBJECTIVE

In an effort to address this gap in the literature, the present review synthesizes available research regarding SIP as a mechanism underlying the impact of maltreatment on the development of depression in general, and among youth of color specifically.

PARTICIPANTS & SETTING

A review of literature was conducted on English language articles published between 1989 and 2022 involving maltreatment, depression, social information processing, and/or youth of color.

METHODS

An electronic database search using terms "Maltreatment," "Depression," "Social Information Processing," "Social Cognition," and "Youth of Color" identified relevant literature.

RESULTS

Synthesis of literature supports SIP as a salient mechanism in the effect of maltreatment on depressive symptomatology for youth broadly, identifying the need for additional empirical work explicitly assessing this pathway among youth of color.

CONCLUSION

In addition to support for SIP as a risk pathway for youth broadly, this review highlights associated processes that can lend support to SIP as a meaningful mechanism of risk for youth of color. Additionally, this review addresses the deficit-based approach through which research and intervention tools evaluate youth of color experiencing maltreatment and depression, proposing alternative approaches towards prevention and intervention efforts with this marginalized population.

Diagnostic testing for and detection of physical abuse in infants with brief resolved unexplained events

BACKGROUND

A Brief Resolved Unexplained Event (BRUE) can be a sign of occult physical abuse.

OBJECTIVES

To identify rates of diagnostic testing able to detect physical abuse (head imaging, skeletal survey, and liver transaminases) at BRUE presentation. The secondary objective was to estimate the rate of physical abuse diagnosed at initial BRUE presentation through 1 year of age.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

Infants who presented with a BRUE at one of 15 academic or community hospitals were followed from initial BRUE presentation until 1 year of age for BRUE recurrence or revisits.

METHODS

This study was part of the BRUE Research and Quality Improvement Network, a multicenter retrospective cohort examining infants with BRUE. Generalized estimating equations assessed associations with performance of diagnostic testing (adjusted odds ratio (aOR)).

RESULTS

Of the 2036 infants presenting with a BRUE, 6.2 % underwent head imaging, 7.0 % skeletal survey, and 12.1 % liver transaminases. Infants were more likely to undergo skeletal survey if there were physical examination findings concerning for trauma (aOR 8.23, 95 % CI [1.92, 35.24], p < 0.005) or concerning social history (aOR 1.89, 95 % CI [1.13, 3.16], p = 0.015). There were 7 (0.3 %) infants diagnosed with physical abuse: one at BRUE presentation, one <3 days after BRUE presentation, and five >30 days after BRUE presentation.

CONCLUSION

There were low rates of diagnostic testing and physical abuse identified in infants presenting with BRUE. Further study including standardized testing protocols is warranted to identify physical abuse in infants presenting with a BRUE.

Child safety assessments during a caregiver's evaluation in emergency departments after intimate partner violence

BACKGROUND

Physical abuse of children is reported to occur in 30%-60% of homes with intimate partner violence (IPV). IPV in adult victims presenting to emergency departments (EDs) represents a critical opportunity to evaluate for child safety.

OBJECTIVES

The primary objective was to determine the frequency of child safety assessments (CSAs), defined as any documented inquiry about the presence of children in the household, when adults presented to EDs for IPV. The secondary aims were to assess (1) the impact of demographic factors, ED type, and social work (SW) involvement on the likelihood of CSAs; (2) the nature of children's exposure; and (3) the frequency of child protective services (CPS) reports.

METHODS

We performed a chart review of encounters with ICD-10-CM codes for patients aged 18-60 with IPV presenting to three EDs in Connecticut from 2017 through 2019.

RESULTS

CSAs were completed in 179/277 encounters (78.9%) and were more likely to be completed in encounters with SW involvement than without (162/171 [94.7%] vs. 17/56 [30.3%], p < 0.001). A total of 143 children lived in the home at the time of the incident; of the 107 children for whom the nature of exposure was known, 10 (9.3%) were physically involved and 26 (24.2%) were direct witnesses to the violence. CPS reports were made in 52.4% of the encounters in which children lived in the home.

CONCLUSIONS

CSAs were omitted in one-fifth of encounters for IPV. Given the high prevalence of children involved in IPV episodes, ED encounters for IPV represent an opportunity to improve the safety of children.

Judgements of physicians, nurses, and social workers regarding suspected Child maltreatment in community health care services

This study investigated how physicians, nurses, and social workers in community health care services make judgements about possible child maltreatment in ambiguous situations. We examined the influences of social biases (i.e., perceptions linking ethnicity, gender, and family socioeconomic status to child maltreatment) and belonging to distinctive occupational groups (i.e., physicians, nurses, and social workers) on professionals' assessment of suspected child maltreatment, intention to consult with others, and reporting. We used an experimental survey design including vignettes presenting a child's history inspired by real-life clinical cases. Data were collected from 397 health care professionals-170 physicians, 179 nurses, and 48 social workers-employed at community health care clinics in northern Israel. Findings show that the child's gender and family socioeconomic status had significant effects on assessment of possible child maltreatment. Also, professionals' occupational group had significant effects on assessment of child maltreatment and intention to pursue consultation. Another key finding was the significant effects of judgements about child maltreatment assessment, consultation, and reporting on one another. The study reinforces efforts to improve health care professionals' management of suspected child maltreatment that include the development of clinical decision support systems that use routinely collected electronic medical record data.

Contrasting Methods of Measurement in Spatial Analyses Examining the Alcohol Environment and Child Maltreatment

Child physical abuse is a major public health issue in the United States. Environmental child welfare research has focused on neighborhood characteristics and the influence of alcohol and marijuana establishments. To our knowledge, child welfare studies have singularly examined the outcome in terms of victims, that is, at the level of child population, and have not considered the parent population. Thus, in this exploratory study, we use spatial scan statistics to analyze patterns of child physical abuse at the child and household level, and we use Bayesian hierarchical spatial conditional autoregressive models to determine the relative influence of alcohol availability and other environmental factors. We find that household clusters are nested in child clusters and that controlling for alcohol establishments reduces cluster size. In the Bayesian regression models, alcohol availability increased risk slightly, while neighborhood diversity (measured using Blau's Index) elevated risk considerably. Immediate implications for child welfare agencies are discussed.

Violence in the Great Recession

Substantial evidence suggests that economic hardship causes violence. However, a large majority of this research relies on observational studies that use traditional violence surveillance systems that suffer from selection bias and over-represent vulnerable populations, such as people of color. To overcome limitations of prior work, we employed a quasi-experimental design to assess the impact of the Great Recession on explicit violence diagnoses (injuries identified to be caused by a violent event) and proxy violence diagnoses (injuries highly correlated with violence) for child maltreatment, intimate partner violence, elder abuse, and their combination. We used Minnesota hospital data (2004-2014), conducting a difference-in-differences analysis at the county level (n = 86) using linear regression to compare changes in violence rates from before the recession (2004-2007) to after the recession (2008-2014) in counties most affected by the recession, versus changes over the same time period in counties less affected by the recession. The findings suggested that the Great Recession had little or no impact on explicitly identified violence; however, it affected proxy-identified violence. Counties that were more highly affected by the Great Recession saw a greater increase in the average rate of proxy-identified child abuse, elder abuse, intimate partner violence, and combined violence when compared with less-affected counties.

The Association of Race, Ethnicity, and Poverty With Child Maltreatment Reporting

OBJECTIVES

To determine the role of race/ethnicity and poverty in the likelihood of children younger than age 3 years hospitalized because of child abuse and neglect-related injuries being reported to child protective services (CPS) and being assigned a specific maltreatment diagnostic code.

METHODS

We used population-based linked administrative data comprising of birth, hospitalization, and CPS records. Children were identified for maltreatment-related hospitalizations using standardized diagnostic codes. Regression models were used to compute crude and adjusted race/ethnicity estimates regarding the likelihood of being reported to CPS and assigned a specific maltreatment diagnostic code during the maltreatment-related hospitalization.

RESULTS

Of the 3907 children hospitalized because of child maltreatment, those with public health insurance were more likely than those with private insurance (relative risk [RR]: 1.29; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.16-1.42) and those with Asian/Pacific Islander mothers were less likely than those with White mothers to be reported to CPS (RR: 0.78; 95% CI, 0.65-0.93). No differences were found for children with Black, Hispanic, and Native American mothers compared with those with White mothers for CPS reporting. However, children with Native American mothers (RR: 1.45; 95% CI, 1.11-1.90) and public health insurance (RR: 2.00; 95% CI, 1.63-2.45) were more likely to have a specific maltreatment diagnostic code, the second strongest predictor of a CPS report.

CONCLUSIONS

Race/ethnicity and poverty were factors for CPS reports during a child maltreatment-related hospitalization. It is necessary to implement programs and policies that mitigate implicit bias to prevent inequities in which children receive protective intervention.

Community disadvantage, family socioeconomic status, and racial/ethnic differences in maltreatment reporting risk during infancy

BACKGROUND

Children are reported for maltreatment during infancy at elevated rates; research has established persistent racial/ethnic differences in the likelihood of reporting to the child protection system (CPS).

OBJECTIVE

To model the influence of race/ethnicity and community disadvantage in CPS reporting during infancy.

PARTICIPANTS/SETTING

A population-based dataset consisting of more than 1.2 million children born in California between 2012 and 2014. Vital birth records were probabilistically linked to administrative CPS records. American Community Survey data were used to measure community disadvantage.

METHODS

For each child, we coded sociodemographic information from the birth record, assigned the child to a community using their residential address at birth, and captured maltreatment reports from child protection records. We employed a modified Poisson regression model to examine an infant's likelihood of being reported to CPS by race/ethnicity across levels of community disadvantage and after adjusting for individual-level covariates.

RESULTS

Infants born in neighborhoods with the most concentrated disadvantage were reported to CPS at 7 times the rate of children born in the most advantaged neighborhoods (12.3% vs. 1.8%). After adjusting for individual-level covariates, we found that both Black and Hispanic infants born on public insurance were significantly less likely than White infants to be reported for maltreatment overall - and Black and Hispanic infants had a statistically equivalent or lower likelihood of reporting at the two extremes of neighborhood disadvantage. Among privately insured families, Hispanic infants continued to have a lower likelihood of reporting, but Black infants were reported at higher rates than White infants. This Black-White difference persisted in the most advantaged neighborhoods, but disappeared in the most disadvantaged neighborhoods.

CONCLUSIONS

Capturing individual-level differences in socioeconomic status and associated risk factors is critical to understanding sources of racial/ethnic differences in CPS reporting, including when there is unwarranted variation or disparate treatment. Our findings suggest an elevated likelihood of maltreatment reporting among privately insured Black infants not explained by differences in observed risk or neighborhood, but no such differences were documented for Black or Hispanic infants on public insurance.

Development and Validation of a Natural Language Processing Tool to Identify Injuries in Infants Associated With Abuse

OBJECTIVES

Medically minor but clinically important findings associated with physical child abuse, such as bruises in pre-mobile infants, may be identified by frontline clinicians yet the association of these injuries with child abuse is often not recognized, potentially allowing the abuse to continue and even to escalate. An accurate natural language processing (NLP) algorithm to identify high-risk injuries in electronic health record notes could improve detection and awareness of abuse. The objectives were to: 1) develop an NLP algorithm that accurately identifies injuries in infants associated with abuse and 2) determine the accuracy of this algorithm.

METHODS

An NLP algorithm was designed to identify ten specific injuries known to be associated with physical abuse in infants. Iterative cycles of review identified inaccurate triggers, and coding of the algorithm was adjusted. The optimized NLP algorithm was applied to emergency department (ED) providers' notes on 1344 consecutive sample of infants seen in 9 EDs over 3.5 months. Results were compared with review of the same notes conducted by a trained reviewer blind to the NLP results with discrepancies adjudicated by a child abuse expert.

RESULTS

Among the 1344 encounters, 41 (3.1%) had one of the high-risk injuries. The NLP algorithm had a sensitivity and specificity of 92.7% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 79.0%-98.1%) and 98.1% (95% CI: 97.1%-98.7%), respectively, and positive and negative predictive values were 60.3% and 99.8%, respectively, for identifying high-risk injuries.

CONCLUSIONS

An NLP algorithm to identify infants with high-risk injuries in EDs has good accuracy and may be useful to aid clinicians in the identification of infants with injuries associated with child abuse.

Nonaccidental Trauma in Pediatric Elbow Fractures: When You Should Be Worried

BACKGROUND

Nonaccidental trauma (NAT) is a rising source of morbidity and mortality in the pediatric population. Fractures are often the first cause for presentation to health care providers in the case of NAT but can be misidentified as accidental. Given that elbow fractures are the most common accidental injuries among pediatric patients, they are not traditionally associated with NAT. This study aims to determine the prevalence of NAT among elbow fractures and identify common features in nonaccidental elbow fractures.

METHODS

Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) codes were used to retrospectively identify all pediatric (0 to 17) elbow fractures at a single, tertiary children's hospital between 2007 and 2017. Among these, all fractures for which an institutional child abuse evaluation team was consulted were identified. The medical record was then used to determine which of these fractures were due to NAT. Standard injury radiographs of all victims of NAT as well as all patients under 1 year of age were blinded and radiographically evaluated for fracture type by a pediatric orthopaedic surgeon.

RESULTS

The prevalence of nonaccidental elbow fractures across the 10-year study period was 0.4% (N=18). However, the prevalence of nonaccidental elbow fractures in those patients below 1 year of age was markedly higher at 30.3% (10/33). Among all elbow fractures in patients below 1 year of age, supracondylar humerus fractures were the most common fracture type (19/33, 57.6%), yet transphyseal fractures (6/33, 18.1%) were most commonly the result of NAT (5/6, 83.3%). In children over 1 year of age, fracture type was not an indicator of NAT.

CONCLUSIONS

The vast majority of pediatric elbow fractures (99.6%) are accidental. However, certain factors, namely age below 1 year and transphyseal fractures increase the likelihood that these fractures may be a result of NAT.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Level IV: retrospective case series.

Bruising in Infants: An Approach to the Recognition of Child Physical Abuse

Infants (children <12 months of age) are maltreated at more than twice the rate of any other child age group, and infants die because of maltreatment at 3 times the rate of any other age group in childhood. The incidence of hospitalization for serious physical abuse in children also is highest for infants. Successful recognition of medically mild signs of physical abuse in infants, such as certain bruising patterns, can, therefore, lead to lifesaving interventions. The importance of the recognition of medically mild injuries due to physical abuse is underscored by the finding that a high percentage of infants (27.5%) hospitalized with serious physical abuse were found to have previously sustained milder injuries, such as bruising. Clinicians must be aware of patterns of bruising suggestive of abuse to distinguish between infants who have been abused and those who have been accidentally injured. To maximize the likelihood that abused infants will be identified and protected, as well to minimize the likelihood that an accidentally injured infant will be mischaracterized as abused, the application of an evidence-based approach to the evaluation of bruised infants should be applied. A consistent, evidence-based practice in this setting also may reduce the influence of racial and socioeconomic bias and decrease disparities in care.

An analysis of physicians' diagnostic reasoning regarding pediatric abusive head trauma

BACKGROUND

Physician diagnoses of abusive head trauma (AHT) have been criticized for circular reasoning and over-reliance on a "triad" of findings. Absent a gold standard, analyses that apply restrictive reference standards for AHT and non-AHT could serve to confirm or refute these criticisms.

OBJECTIVES

To compare clinical presentations and injuries in patients with witnessed/admitted AHT vs. witnessed non-AHT, and with witnessed/admitted AHT vs. physician diagnosed AHT not witnessed/admitted. To measure the triad's AHT test performance in patients with witnessed/admitted AHT vs. witnessed non-AHT.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

Acutely head injured patients <3 years hospitalized for intensive care across 18 sites between 2010 and 2021.

METHODS

Secondary analyses of existing, combined, cross-sectional datasets. Probability values and odds ratios were used to identify and characterize differences. Test performance measures included sensitivity, specificity, and predictive values.

RESULTS

Compared to patients with witnessed non-AHT (n = 100), patients with witnessed/admitted AHT (n = 58) presented more frequently with respiratory compromise (OR 2.94, 95% CI: 1.50-5.75); prolonged encephalopathy (OR 5.23, 95% CI: 2.51-10.89); torso, ear, or neck bruising (OR 11.87, 95% CI: 4.48-31.48); bilateral subdural hemorrhages (OR 8.21, 95% CI: 3.94-17.13); diffuse brain hypoxia, ischemia, or swelling (OR 6.51, 95% CI: 3.06-13.02); and dense, extensive retinal hemorrhages (OR 7.59, 95% CI: 2.85-20.25). All differences were statistically significant (p ≤ .001). No significant differences were observed in patients with witnessed/admitted AHT (n = 58) vs. patients diagnosed with AHT not witnessed/admitted (n = 438). The triad demonstrated AHT specificity and positive predictive value ≥0.96.

CONCLUSIONS

The observed differences in patients with witnessed/admitted AHT vs. witnessed non-AHT substantiate prior reports. The complete absence of differences in patients with witnessed/admitted AHT vs. physician diagnosed AHT not witnessed/admitted supports an impression that physicians apply diagnostic reasoning informed by knowledge of previously reported injury patterns. Concern for abuse is justified in patients who present with "the triad."

Application of a Child Sex Trafficking Screening Tool in Patients with Abuse: A Retrospective Chart Review in the Pediatric Emergency Department

INTRODUCTION

Human trafficking (HT) is a global problem that may affect children's health. In the United States, victims and children are at risk in most communities. History of abuse is a risk factor for HT. This study explored associations between pediatric patients with positive universal abuse screens and indicators from the commercial sexual exploitation of children/child sex trafficking (CSEC/CST) screening tool.

METHOD

A retrospective chart review was conducted on random patients, aged 11-17 years, with positive universal abuse screens at emergency/urgent care departments in a large Midwest pediatric medical center in 2018. Documentation identifying at least two CSEC/CST screening tool indicators was abstracted from these records. Data analysis included descriptive statistics, univariate analyses, and correlations.

RESULTS

Two or more indicators from the CSEC/CST screening tool were identified in 43% (n = 121). Age and history of running away were significant predictors for a patient having two or more CSEC/CST positive indicators.

DISCUSSION

Targeted screening and interventions are needed to identify and help these vulnerable youth.

External Validation of the PediBIRN Screening Tool for Abusive Head Trauma in Pediatric Emergency Department Settings

METHODS

We conducted a retrospective, secondary analysis of an existing, deidentified, prospective data set captured to derive a bruising CDR. Subjects were patients under 3 years with bruising and confirmed acute head trauma. An expert medical panel had previously identified patients with AHT. Measures of the CDR's AHT screening performance (sensitivity, specificity, likelihood ratios) were calculated with 95% confidence intervals (CIs).

RESULTS

Expert medical panel members had classified 78 of 117 eligible patients (67%) as AHT, 38 (33%) as non-AHT, and 1 as indeterminate. Excluding the indeterminate case, the PediBIRN-4 demonstrated a sensitivity of 0.96 (95% CI, 0.88-0.99), specificity of 0.29 (95% CI, 0.16-0.46), positive likelihood ratio of 1.35 (95% CI, 1.10-1.67), and negative likelihood ratio of 0.13 (95% CI, 0.04-0.46). Close inspection of the data revealed that 1 of the CDR's predictor variables had lowered specificity without impacting sensitivity. Eliminating this variable would have increased specificity to 0.84 (95% CI, 0.68-0.93).

CONCLUSIONS

The PediBIRN 4-variable CDR demonstrated AHT screening sensitivity in the pediatric ED equivalent to pediatric intensive care unit and other inpatient settings, but lower specificity. Further study of a simplified 3-variable PediBIRN AHT screening tool for the ED setting is warranted.

Prevalence of Injuries Among Medicaid Enrolled Infants Prior to Child Abuse and Neglect

Prior research has identified common injuries among children who experience child maltreatment; however, most of this work has focused on inpatient settings and has excluded many cases of neglect. This study examines the prevalence of injuries that occur prior to a diagnosis of child maltreatment, as well as the proportion of children with well-child visits prior to the injury and child maltreatment diagnosis. Based on a secondary analysis of Medicaid data from four states, we found that among infants with 12 months of continuous enrollment (N = 4817), 30.6% of those diagnosed with maltreatment were previously diagnosed with an injury. Among infants diagnosed with child maltreatment, 88.4% had at least one well-child visit prior to the maltreatment diagnosis. Among children with a maltreatment diagnosis and a prior injury, 84% had at least one well-child visit preceding the injury. These results indicate that most children had at least one well-child visit prior to being diagnosed with child maltreatment or an injury, indicating opportunities for prevention.

Child Abuse Pediatricians Assess a Low Likelihood of Abuse in Half of 2890 Physical Abuse Consults

The aim of this study was to examine the frequency with which child abuse pediatricians (CAPs) assess consultations as low versus high likelihood of abuse. In this retrospective secondary analysis of data from the Examining Siblings to Recognize Abuse (ExSTRA) study, the likelihood of abuse score for 2890 consultations at 20 medical centers was collected. Descriptive statistics were used to examine the percentage of cases representing low versus high likelihood of abuse (i.e., score of 1-4 vs. 5-7 on a 7-point scale). Linear and logistic regression analyses were used to examine score variability between medical centers. Overall, fifty-three percent of cases were assessed as low likelihood of abuse, suggesting that CAPs were equally as likely to assess a high versus low likelihood of abuse. The percentage of cases representing low likelihood of abuse differed significantly (P < .001) between medical centers after controlling for patient age, sex, race/ethnicity, twin/triplet status, injury types, and injury severity. The variability between CAP assessments at different medical centers is discussed, along with potential contributors to this variability and directions for future work.

Applying a diagnostic excellence framework to assess opportunities to improve recognition of child physical abuse

OBJECTIVES

Diagnostic excellence is an important domain of healthcare quality. Delays in diagnosis have been described in 20-30% of children with abusive injuries. Despite the well characterized epidemiology, improvement strategies remain elusive. We sought to assess the applicability of diagnostic improvement instruments to cases of non-accidental trauma and to identify potential opportunities for system improvement in child physical abuse diagnosis.

METHODS

We purposefully sampled 10 cases identified as having potential for system level interventions and in which the child had prior outpatient encounters to review. Experts in pediatrics, child abuse, and diagnostic improvement independently reviewed each case and completed SaferDx, a validated instrument used to evaluate the diagnostic process. Cases were subsequently discussed to map potential opportunities for improving the diagnostic process to the DEER Taxonomy, which classifies opportunities by type and phase of the diagnostic process.

RESULTS

The most frequent improvement opportunities identified by the SaferDx were in recognition of potential alarm symptoms and in expanding differential diagnosis (5 of 10 cases). The most frequent DEER taxonomy process opportunities were in history taking (8 of 10) and hypothesis generation (7 of 10). Discussion elicited additional opportunities in reconsideration of provisional diagnoses, understanding biopsychosocial risk, and addressing information scatter within the electronic health record (EHR).

CONCLUSIONS

Applying a diagnostic excellence framework facilitated identification of systems opportunities to improve recognition of child abuse including integration of EHR information to support recognition of alarm symptoms, collaboration to support vulnerable families, and communication about diagnostic reasoning.

Screening for pediatric abusive head trauma: Are three variables enough?

BACKGROUND

The PediBIRN 4-variable clinical decision rule (CDR) detects abusive head trauma (AHT) with 96% sensitivity in pediatric intensive care (PICU) settings. Preliminary analysis of its performance in Pediatric Emergency Department settings found that elimination of its fourth predictor variable enhanced screening accuracy.

OBJECTIVE

To compare the AHT screening performances of the "PediBIRN-4" CDR vs. the simplified 3-variable CDR in PICU settings.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTINGS

973 acutely head-injured children <3 years hospitalized for intensive care across 18 sites between February 2011 and March 2021.

METHODS

Retrospective, secondary analysis of the combined, prospective PediBIRN data sets. AHT definitional criteria and physicians' diagnoses were applied iteratively to sort patients into abusive vs. other head trauma cohorts. Outcome measures of CDR performance included sensitivity, specificity, predictive values, likelihood ratios, ROC AUC, and the correlation between each CDR's patient-specific estimates of AHT probability and the overall positive yield of patients' completed abuse evaluations.

RESULTS

Applied accurately and consistently, both CDR's would have performed with sensitivity ≥93% and negative predictive value ≥91%. Eliminating the PediBIRN-4's fourth predictor variable resulted in significantly higher specificity (↑'d ≥19%), positive predictive value (↑'d ≥8%), and ROC AUC (↑'d ≥5%), but a 3% reduction in sensitivity. Both CDRs provided patient-specific estimates of abuse probability very strongly correlated with the positive yield of patients' completed abuse evaluations (Pearson's r = 0.95 and 0.91, p = .13).

CONCLUSION

The PediBIRN 3-variable CDR performed with greater AHT screening accuracy than the 4-variable CDR. Both are good predictors of the results of patients' subsequent completed abuse evaluations.

Non-accidental Trauma in Infants: a Review of Evidence-Based Strategies for Diagnosis, Management, and Prevention

Purpose of Review

To provide a resource for providers that may be involved in the diagnosis and management of infant non-accidental trauma (NAT).

Recent Findings

Infants are more likely to both suffer from physical abuse and die from their subsequent injuries. There are missed opportunities among providers for recognizing sentinel injuries. Minority children are overrepresented in the reporting of child maltreatment, and there is systemic bias in the evaluation and treatment of minority victims of child abuse.

Summary

Unfortunately, no single, primary preventative intervention has been conclusively shown to reduce the incidence of child maltreatment. Standardized algorithms for NAT screening have been shown to increase the bias-free utilization of NAT evaluations. Every healthcare provider that interacts with children has a responsibility to recognize warning signs of NAT, be able to initiate the evaluation for suspected NAT, and understand their role as a mandatory reporter.

Racial and ethnic differences in pediatric unintentional injuries requiring hospitalization

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE

This study aims to comprehensively examine racial and ethnic differences in pediatric unintentional injuries requiring hospitalization by age across injury mechanisms.

STUDY DESIGN

This was a retrospective, nationally representative cross-sectional analysis of discharge data within the 2016 Kids' Inpatient Database for 98,611 children ≤19 years with unintentional injuries resulting in hospitalization. Injury categories included passengers and pedestrians injured in a motor vehicle crash, falls, drownings, burns, firearms, drug and nondrug poisonings, suffocations, and other injuries. Relative risk (RR) for injuries requiring hospitalization were calculated for children of Black, Hispanic, and Other races and ethnicities compared with White children, and then RR were further stratified by age. Excessive hospitalizations were calculated as the absolute number of hospitalizations for each race and ethnicity group that would have been avoided if each group had the same rate as White children.

RESULTS

Black children were significantly more likely to be hospitalized compared with White children for all injury mechanisms except falls, and in nearly all age groups with the greatest RR for firearm injuries (RR 9.8 [95% confidence interval: 9.5-10.2]). Differences were associated with 6263 excessive hospitalizations among all racial and ethnic minority children compared with White children.

CONCLUSIONS

Racial and ethnic minority children represent populations at persistent disproportionate risk for injuries resulting in hospitalization; risk that varies in important ways by injury mechanism and children's age. These findings suggest the importance of the environmental and societal exposures that may drive these differences, but other factors, such as provider bias, may also contribute.

Mild abusive head injury: diagnosis and pitfalls

Clinicians often miss making the diagnosis of abusive head injury in infants and toddlers who present with mild, non-specific symptoms such as vomiting, fussiness, irritability, trouble sleeping and eating, and seizure. If abusive head injury is missed, the child is likely to go on to experience more severe injury. An extensive review of the medical literature was done to summarize what is known about missed abusive head injury and about how these injuries can be recognized and appropriately evaluated. The following issues will be addressed: the definition of mild head injury, problems encountered when clinicians evaluated mildly ill young children with non-specific symptoms, the risk of missing the diagnosis of mild abusive head trauma, the risks involved in subjecting infants and young children to radiation and/or sedation required for neuroimaging studies, imaging options for suspected neurotrauma in children, clinical prediction rules for evaluating mild head injury in children, laboratory tests than can be helpful in diagnosing mild abusive head injury, history and physical examination when diagnosing or ruling out mild abusive head injury, social and family factors that could be associated with abusive injuries, and interventions that could improve our recognition of mild abusive head injuries. Relevant literature is described and evaluated. The conclusion is that abusive head trauma remains a difficult diagnosis to identify in mildly symptomatic young children.

Measuring the hidden burden of violence: use of explicit and proxy codes in Minnesota injury hospitalizations, 2004-2014

PURPOSE

Commonly-used violence surveillance systems are biased towards certain populations due to overreporting or over-scrutinized. Hospital discharge data may offer a more representative view of violence, through use of proxy codes, i.e. diagnosis of injuries correlated with violence. The goals of this paper are to compare the trends in violence in Minnesota, and associations of county-level demographic characteristics with violence rates, measured through explicitly diagnosed violence and proxy codes. It is an exploration of how certain sub-populations are overrepresented in traditional surveillance systems.

METHODS

Using Minnesota hospital discharge data linked with census data from 2004 to 2014, this study examined the distribution and time trends of explicit, proxy, and combined (proxy and explicit) codes for child abuse, intimate partner violence (IPV), and elder abuse. The associations between county-level risk factors (e.g., poverty) and county violence rates were estimated using negative binomial regression models with generalized estimation equations to account for clustering over time.

RESULTS

The main finding was that the patterns of county-level violence differed depending on whether one used explicit or proxy codes. In particular, explicit codes suggested that child abuse and IPV trends were flat or decreased slightly from 2004 to 2014, while proxy codes suggested the opposite. Elder abuse increased during this timeframe for both explicit and proxy codes, but more dramatically when using proxy codes. In regard to the associations between county level characteristics and each violence subtype, previously identified county-level risk factors were more strongly related to explicitly-identified violence than to proxy-identified violence. Given the larger number of proxy-identified cases as compared with explicit-identified violence cases, the trends and associations of combined codes align more closely with proxy codes, especially for elder abuse and IPV.

CONCLUSIONS

Violence surveillance utilizing hospital discharge data, and particularly proxy codes, may add important information that traditional surveillance misses. Most importantly, explicit and proxy codes indicate different associations with county sociodemographic characteristics. Future research should examine hospital discharge data for violence identification to validate proxy codes that can be utilized to help to identify the hidden burden of violence.

Addressing ethical clinical dilemmas with quality improvement methodology

Application of Quality Improvement methodology to nuanced clinical scenarios may be useful to ensure consistent delivery of equitable and comprehensive care. The purpose of this article is to inform the pediatric surgical readership of opportunities where quality improvement methodology may aid in navigating ethical nuances of complex surgical care. We present three case scenarios and discuss how quality improvement methodology could be utilized to address issues of provider autonomy, patient autonomy, and justice.

Implicit Bias and Caring for Diverse Populations: Pediatric Trainee Attitudes and Gaps in Training

The objective of this study was to determine the attitudes, skill level, and preferred educational interventions of pediatric residents related to implicit bias and caring for diverse patient populations. A cross-sectional survey of pediatric residents at a single, large urban residency program was utilized. Surveys were completed by 88 (55%) residents who were 69% female and 35% non-White or mixed race. Almost all residents felt that it was very or extremely important to receive training on health disparities, diverse patient populations, and implicit bias. Self-assessment of skill level revealed that residents felt confident in areas often covered by cultural competency curricula, such as interpreter use, but were less confident in other areas. The top 3 areas identified for further training included implicit bias, working with transgender and gender nonconforming patients, and weight bias. For the majority of diversity and bias-related skills, prior training was significantly correlated with higher skill level (P < .05).