Quality Improvement Effort to Reduce Cranial CTs for Children With Minor Blunt Head Trauma.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Blunt head trauma is a common injury in children, although it rarely requires surgical intervention. Cranial computed tomography (CT) is the reference standard for the diagnosis of traumatic brain injury but has been associated with increased lifetime malignancy risk. We implemented a multifaceted quality improvement initiative to decrease the use of cranial CT for children with minor head injuries.

Methods

We designed and implemented a quality improvement effort that included an evidence-based guideline as well as individual feedback for children aged 0 to 21 years who present to the emergency department (ED) for evaluation of minor blunt head trauma. Our primary outcome was cranial CT rate, and our balancing measure was any return to the ED within 72 hours that r

SUBMITTER: Nigrovic LE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5660895 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature