Pediatrics Commons^™

A Case Of Metabolic Genetic Emergency, Elizabeth Loughman

Research Days

Background: Newborn screening (NBS) is one of the largest public health initiatives to improve infant morbidity and mortality, and this has been shown to detect and lead to prompt treatment of uncommon but rapidly fatal conditions. While NBS has changed outcomes of diseases, it is still imperative that prompt and early recognition of abnormal results and medical interventions remain the mainstay of care.

Objective: To describe a case of inborn error of metabolism in a 4-day old asymptomatic infant, where early recognition and treatment affected outcome.

Design/Methods: This case is a 4-day old female, former 36-week gestational age infant who …

Association Between Blood Pressure And Esa Dose In Pediatric Patients On Dialysis, Heather A. Morgans

Research Days

Background: Hypertension is a reported side effect of Erythropoiesis Stimulating Agents (ESAs), with a mechanism of action related to elevated hematocrit levels and direct vasopressor effects. Limited information exists on the relationship between ESA dosage and hypertension in children receiving maintenance dialysis.

Objectives/Goal: The primary aim of this study was to determine whether there is a significant association between ESA dose and blood pressure (BP) in pediatric patients on dialysis. The secondary aim was to determine covariates in relation to ESA dose.

Methods/Design: Data from the International Pediatric Dialysis Network (IPDN) database was used to retrospectively analyze the association between …

Setting A Threshold For Discharge Antibiotics In Children With Perforated Appendicitis: A Study Update, Kayla B. Briggs

Research Days

Background: To address concerns of antibiotic overutilization, normal white blood cell count (WBC) for age was previous l criteria for discontinuing antibiotics at discharge in perforated appendicitis. Retrospective review suggested a decrease in threshold for additional antibiotic administration to a discharge WBC(IAA).

Objectives/Goal: The purpose of our study is to determine if lowering the threshold for additional antibiotic administration decreased the rate of IAA after laparoscopic appendectomy for perforated appendicitis in children who were not discharged with additional antibiotics.

Methods/Design: Following IRB approval, prospective data was retrospectively reviewed. Children with perforated appendicitis identified during laparoscopic appendectomy at our institution between …

Standardized Point-Of-Care Ultrasound (Pocus) Set-Up For Cardiac Evaluation During Covid-19 Pandemic In A Pediatric Population., Anmol Goyal

Research Days

Background: The novel coronavirus SARS-CoV2 is known to cause significant cardiac dysfunction, effusion, thromboembolism and coronary dilation. Currently no pediatric specific guidelines exist from ACC or ASE for use of POCUS. Our objective was to identify ideal pediatric appropriate POCUS equipment and standardize its use.

Methods: A Phillips Lumify probe paired with Android-Samsung tablet and a Butterfly iQ probe paired with an iPad were considered. A workflow algorithm and cleaning instructions were created. If the POCUS scan answered the clinical question, then a detailed echo was deferred. If the POCUS scan revealed findings requiring comprehensive evaluation, a follow-up echo was …

C-Reactive Protein Values To Predict Sepsis-Induced Inflammatory Response In Premature Infants, Megan H. Tucker

Research Days

Background: C-reactive protein (CRP) is an inflammatory marker that has been recognized as a biomarker of the systemic inflammatory response in preterm neonates. We hypothesized that initial and peak CRP values would correlate with the degree of sepsis-induced acute lung injury (ALI) as measured by the pulmonary severity score (PSS).

Objectives/Goal: 1) Determine if confirmed (CF) sepsis events are associated with higher initial and peak CRP values than rule out (RO) sepsis events. 2) Investigate if initial and/or peak CRP correlates with severity of sepsis-induced ALI as measured by the PSS.

Methods/Design: In this retrospective case control study, we included …

Kernicterus Spectrum Disorders Diagnostic Toolkit: Validation Using Retrospective Chart Review, Vijaya Dasari

Research Days

Background: Kernicterus Spectrum Disorders (KSDs) result from hyperbilirubinemia-induced brain injury. While rare, KSDs can result in devastating neurologic sequelae affecting motor function and tone, causing dystonia and choreoathetosis, and/or auditory neuropathy spectrum disorders. Families of children with undiagnosed neurodevelopmental disorders and a history of neonatal hyperbilirubinemia often question this potential diagnosis. We developed a Toolkit (KSD-TK) questionnaire in an effort to provide a standardized method to predict the likelihood of KSDs.

Objectives/Goal: This study compares the accuracy of the KSD-TK to clinical diagnoses made by our Children’s Mercy Hospital Kernicterus Center of Excellence (KCOE). The primary objective of this study …

Bivalirudin And Thrombolytic Therapy: A Novel Successful Treatment Of Severe Aortic Arch Thrombosis In A Term Neonate, Amjad Taha

Research Days

SUMMARY An early term infant with uncomplicated perinatal history was found to have a large thrombus in the aortic arch after he failed regular newborn critical congenital heart defect (CCHD) screen. He responded well to Bivalirudin thrombolytic and tissue-Plasminogen activator (tPA) combination therapy, with a significant resolution of the thrombus. The infant tolerated hospital admission well with no significant complications. He was discharged home on daily aspirin at two weeks of life. To our knowledge, the combination therapy approach with Bivalirudin and tPA is the first one reported in the literature in the neonatal age group.

BACKGROUND Aortic arch thrombosis …

Functional Outcomes Of Infants With Chiari Ii Malformation With Tracheostomy And Home Ventilator Dependence, Abbigayle Carlson

Research Days

Background: Chiari II malformation is relatively common with an incidence of about 1 in 1000 live birth and is associated with reduced life expectancy. Characteristic features are beaked midbrain, downward displacement of the tonsils, and cerebellar vermis, and spinal myelomeningocele that can be associated with hydrocephalus needing ventriculoperitoneal shunt (VP shunt). Mortality is about 50-70% if not recognized early. Survivors have high morbidity and develop neurologic abnormalities and significant developmental delays. Long-term outcome is poorly understood.

Objective: Not much has been published that describes the outcome of infant with Chiari II malformation that received tracheostomy for long-term ventilator support. Our …

Diagnosis And Management Of Otitis Media With Effusion In Pediatric Urgent Care Clinics, Ashley Deschepper

Research Days

Background: Otitis media with effusion (OME)’s clinical presentation is often confused with acute otitis media (AOM) by providers. Despite OME guidelines recommending watchful waiting with no antibiotics, rates of antibiotic use remain elevated. In our pediatric urgent care clinics (UCCs), an estimated 50% of patients diagnosed with OME receive antibiotic prescriptions.

Objectives/Goal: To determine the provider diagnosis validity and the rates of antibiotics prescribed among pediatric OME patients evaluated in 3 UCCs within a pediatric healthcare system.

Methods/Design: We randomly selected 75% of encounters for children age 0-18 years who had a billing diagnosis of OME in 2019. Charts were …

Activation Of Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor Signaling In Human Trophoblasts Alters Markers Of Growth And Differentiation, Asmaa Alsousi

Research Days

Background: It is estimated that 1.7% of pregnant women smoke during their pregnancy globally, with the highest levels observed in Europe at 8.1%, and lowest in Africa at 0.8. The association of maternal cigarette smoking with increased risk of poor birth outcomes such as preterm birth, congenital anomalies, and neonatal mortality is well-established. In addition, evidence suggests that intrauterine exposure to maternal smoking impacts the risk of developing diseases later in life; however, we still do not understand the exact mechanism(s) leading to these outcomes. Once components of cigarette smoke (CS) cross the placenta and enter the fetal compartment, several …

Evaluation Of A Symptom-Based Algorithm For Managing Battery Ingestions In Children, James Fraser

Research Days

Background/Objectives/Goal: Complications from battery ingestion in the pediatric population are becoming more severe due to the emergence of stronger and smaller batteries. We previously established a symptom-focused, evidence-based algorithm for battery ingestion and seek to evaluate this protocol to investigate its safety and potential cost benefit. (Figure 1)

Methods/Design: Following IRB approval, all radiographs performed for foreign body ingestion between 2017-2020 were reviewed. All button battery ingestions were included to evaluate an institutional symptom-based algorithm emphasizing observation over intervention.

Results: Review of 2,237 foreign bodies series demonstrated 44 button battery ingestions. Median age at ingestion was 3.8 years [2.5,5.2]. Locations …

Medical Neglect: Trends In Reporting Practices And Patient Characteristics, Danielle Horton

Research Days

Background: Medical neglect, an important but less commonly recognized subset of child maltreatment, has significant consequences on child health and well-being. Improved processes for defining, recognizing, and reporting medical neglect are needed, however there is limited published data on the subject. Insight into patient characteristics and current reporting practices will help identify areas for intervention to improve outcomes for children at risk for medical neglect.

Objectives/Goal: To describe characteristics of children identified for concern of medical neglect and trends in reporting of cases to child protective services (CPS).

Methods/Design: We performed a 1-year retrospective descriptive study of subjects < 18 years of age at a single, tertiary-care, academic pediatric institution for whom a Patient at Risk (PAR) assessment was completed exclusively for the concern of medical neglect. The PAR is a unique institutional process by which health professionals and social workers document concerns for child maltreatment. Medical records were reviewed for data regarding demographics, medical history, health care utilization and psychosocial risk factors. The role of the initiating provider and healthcare setting in which the PAR was recorded were also obtained.

Results: Of …

Phenotypic Characterization Of Jarid2-Related Intellectual Disability: A Case Series, Maxime Cadieux-Dion

Research Days

Background: In recent years, wide implementation of research and clinical next generation sequencing has led to an astonishing number of novel disease-gene assertions. Recently, loss of function variants in JARID2 were reported in 16 patients with a clinically distinct neurodevelopmental phenotype that consisted of neurodevelopmental delay, intellectual disability (ID), learning disability, autism and behavioral abnormalities. Dysmorphic features were seen in most patients and included high anterior hairline, deep-set eyes, full lips, broad forehead, bulbous nasal tip, or depressed nasal bridge. Cleft lip/palate was observed in only 1/16 patients. Most cases were de novo, with only one inherited case from an …

Consumption Of High-Fructose Corn Syrup Compared With Sucrose Promotes Adiposity And Increased Triglyceridemia But Comparable Nafld Severity In Juvenile Iberian Pigs, Magdalena Maj, Brooke Harbottle, Payton A Thomas, Gabriella V Hernandez, Victoria A Smith, Mark S Edwards, Rob K Fanter, Hunter S Glanz, Chad Immoos, Douglas G Burrin, Tasha M Santiago-Rodriguez, Michael R La Frano, Rodrigo Manjarín

Children’s Nutrition Research Center Staff Publications

Background: Fructose consumption has been linked to nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in children. However, the effect of high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) compared with sucrose in pediatric NAFLD has not been investigated.

Objectives: We tested whether the isocaloric substitution of dietary sucrose by HFCS would increase the severity of NAFLD in juvenile pigs, and whether this effect would be associated with changes in gut histology, SCFA production, and microbial diversity.

Methods: Iberian pigs, 53-d-old and pair-housed in pens balanced for weight and sex, were randomly assigned to receive a mash diet top-dressed with increasing amounts of sucrose (SUC; n = …

Educational Impact Of Supervising Fellow Visits In The Emergency Department, Grace E. Arends Md

Research Days

Problem Statement/Question: After meeting certain criteria, pediatric emergency medicine (PEM) fellows were previously permitted to independently manage and discharge patients. These encounters anecdotally fostered autonomy but missed educational opportunities. We have previously reported that fellow positive perception of education and autonomy was low (22% and 11%). Additionally, the absence of an attending’s attestation on these patient charts prevented the collection of a professional service fee, an average potential billed amount of $125.67 per unit of service or total of $620,307 in 2019.

Background/Project Intent (Aim Statement): After key stakeholder involvement, we recognized attending supervision for all fellow patients as an …

Smart Rounding: Development Of A Nurse-Driven Rounding Checklist As A Sustainable Intervention For Improved Care Communication, Charles I. Maloy

Research Days

Background/Project Intent: Use of checklists in the healthcare setting is increasingly common and is important to the development of high reliability and standard avenues for communication. At our tertiary care freestanding pediatric hospital, there was no widely used rounding checklist that discussed items important to quality care and patient safety outside of the intensive care unit. The development and implementation of medical checklists for the standard patient floor are inadequately described. We will develop and implement a rounding checklist with at least 80% daily checklist use sustained over 6 months. Team members will report improved multidisciplinary discussion of patient safety …

Educating Providers: Timely Post-Operative Pain Management In A Level Iv Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (Nicu), Jamesia Donato, Jamesia Donato

Research Days

Background/Project Intent (Aim Statement): NICU patients often encounter painful procedures and can have significant short and long-term consequences from inadequately treated pain. Ensuring adequate pharmacological and nonpharmacological pain management while minimizing associated risks is paramount. Our NICU is part of the Children’s Hospitals Neonatal Consortium “Erase Pain” collaborative to improve management of postop pain in neonates. SMART Aim: Increase the percentage of patients receiving acetaminophen within one hour after surgery to greater than 70% by July 2020.

Methods (include PDSA cycles): A multidisciplinary team developed pain treatment algorithms and postop order plans to standardize the approach to postop pain management. …

Improving The Approach To Fellowship Trainee Feedback, Katie A. Vandervelde

Research Days

Problem Statement/Question: Giving and receiving feedback are difficult but necessary skills in medical training. We identified a need for improved feedback based on decreased learner satisfaction on our annual ACGME survey. In an anonymous survey, 2018-19 infectious disease fellows reported receiving formal feedback from 52.4% of their inpatient clinical experiences with faculty.

Background/Project Intent (Aim Statement): Increase the occurrence of feedback to fellows by faculty during clinical service rotations from 52.4% to >90.0% in 6 months utilizing a standardized method.

Methods (include PDSA cycles): A Feedback Card (Figure 1), was developed by fellows and faculty. Both parties were instructed to …

Leveraging Collaboration In Pediatric Multidisciplinary Colorectal Care Using A Telehealth Platform, Joseph Lopez

Research Days

Purpose: Pediatric colorectal problems require complex multidisciplinary care. The COVID-19 health crisis has substantially shifted how this healthcare delivery can safely take place. We sought to track the characteristics of in-person (IP) and telehealth (TH) visits and subsequent satisfaction and utilization in this quality improvement project.

Methods: We present the multidisciplinary clinic experience from October 1, 2019 to August 31, 2020 in which patient volume, visit time length, patient satisfaction survey results, and frequencies of colorectal diagnoses seen before (October 1, 2019 through January 31, 2020) and during the present pandemic (February 1, 2020 through August 31, 2020). Microsoft Teams …

Does Access To Care Influence A Child’S Presentation With Appendicitis?, Neal Talukdar

Research Days

Background + Objectives/Goal: Racial demographic and health care coverage impact how and when patients seek care. Previous studies have documented that minority children present with higher rates of perforated appendicitis. We aimed to identify if racial and coverage disparities were associated with the timing and mechanism of appendicitis presentation.

Methods/Design: We performed a prospective study of children (≤ 18 years old) who underwent laparoscopic appendectomy from May 2018 - September 2020. Prior to discharge, the patient’s parent/guardian completed a survey focused on health care encounters within the past year. Surveys were collected using RedCap®; data were analyzed using STATA®.

Results: …

Pediatric Intensivists' Use Of Nudging In Care Conferences, Aliza Olive

Research Days

Background: Nudging is a behavioral economics term describing a form of choice architecture that affects behavior without eliminating options. Shared decisions with families are made frequently in the PICU during care conferences, where nudging likely occurs, but has not been studied.

Objectives/Goal: We aimed to identify how pediatric intensivists use nudging to guide decision making.

Methods/Design: We conducted a retrospective analysis of 70 PICU care conference transcripts using a validated coding scheme for choice architecture. Choice frames included: saliency, gain loss or mixed frame, yes/no, two options, multiple options, open ended, default, endowment, commission, omission, recommend, expert opinion, certainty, and …

Pulmonary Severity Score As A Measure Of Sepsis-Induced Acute Lung Injury In Preterm Infants, Megan H. Tucker

Research Days

Background: Sepsis is the most common indirect cause of acute lung injury (ALI) in adult and pediatric patients, yet no studies have described this phenomenon in preterm infants. We hypothesize that sepsis-induced ALI occurs in neonates and increases the risk of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) in preterm infants.

Objectives/Goal: 1) To investigate whether late onset sepsis (LOS) and other systemic inflammatory diseases are temporally correlated with ALI as quantified by pulmonary severity score (PSS) trajectory. 2) To determine the sepsis subtypes associated with the greatest severity of ALI.

Methods/Design: We included infants < 31 weeks gestational age and < 1500 grams with LOS in this retrospective case control study. The PSS was calculated at 72, 48, and 24 hours (hr) prior to, at the time of, and 24, 48, 72, and 168hr after sepsis diagnosis. We further defined rule out (RO) sepsis (blood culture negative; antibiotics continued only 48-72hr), blood culture positive (Cx+) sepsis, necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), urinary tract infection (UTI), and culture negative (Cx-) clinical sepsis (blood culture negative; antibiotics continued > 6 days; specific lab criteria met). PSS trajectories for …

Tricuspid Atresia With Totally Anomalous Pulmonary Venous Connection: An Uncommon Finding, Anmol Goyal

Research Days

Background: Tricuspid atresia comprises 3-4% of all congenital heart disease (CHD). Anatomic findings are no true connection between the right atrium (RA) and right ventricle (RV) with concomitant findings of a ventricular septal defect (VSD), right ventricular hypoplasia, abnormalities of right ventricular outflow tract, pulmonary valve and pulmonary arteries. Common associated lesions have been described including transposition of great vessels, hypoplasia of aortic arch, double outlet ventricle or a common arterial trunk. Total anomalous pulmonary venous connection (TAPVC) is relatively rare and we present a case in addition to the six previously described cases in literature.

Case: A 33-year-old woman …

Standardization Of Fertility Preservation Discussion Amongst Pediatric Oncology And Bone Marrow Transplant Patients: A Single Institution Experience, Chandni Dargan, Sarah E. Mc Dermott, Shelby Chesbro

Research Days

Background/Project Intent (Aim Statement): As treatment for pediatric malignancies improves long term survival, physicians are shifting focus to late effects of therapy such as infertility. Currently, options for fertility preservation include cryopreservation of mature oocytes, sperm, and gonadal tissue, although barriers remain present. Within our division, we lacked a standard approach to discussing fertility preservation options prior to initiation of treatment.

Methods (include PDSA cycles): Records from 474 pediatric patients with new oncologic diagnoses at CMH from 2014- 2020 were retrospectively reviewed. We evaluated the frequency that reproductive health discussions were documented in pubertal males and females requiring chemotherapy or …

Esophageal, Gastric, And Duodenal Histologic Findings In Patients With Feeding Difficulties, Amy Issa

Research Days

Background: The etiology of feeding difficulties in children is often multifactorial including medical, oral motor, and behavioral. Gastrointestinal etiologies have been identified as the primary medical component in children with feeding difficulties, however, there is not substantial information to predict which children will have a particular gastrointestinal disorder. The general consensus has been that children with feeding difficulties should have symptoms such as vomiting or abdominal pain to warrant performing esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD), but the validity of this approach has not been established.

Objectives/Goal: The aims of the current study were to describe EGD findings of patients presenting to a large …

Efficacy Of Pediatric Surgery Mobile Application For General Surgery Residents, James Fraser

Research Days

Background/Objectives/Goal: Integration of pediatric surgery content into the general surgery curriculum poses unique challenges as the patient population, pathophysiology, and management of surgical disease is distinctive from other subspecialties. Pediatric surgery represents approximately 2% of content on the in-training exam for residents (ABSITE) and is often underemphasized in didactic material, contributing to difficulty with preparation for these clinical rotations. We hypothesize that implementation of a mobile-based application with pertinent clinical algorithms and resources for pediatric surgical education will improve resident performance and enhance learning experiences in the management of pediatric surgery patients.

Methods/Design: Seventeen residents rotating on the pediatric surgery …

Learning From The Past: A Novel Approach To Reducing Unplanned Extubations In The Neonatal Icu, Yonatan Kurland

Research Days

Background/Project Intent (Aim Statement): The objective of this quality improvement project is to decrease unplanned extubations in a Level IV NICU to an annual rate of2020.

Methods (include PDSA cycles): We hypothesized that increased awareness of historical ETT position would both prevent unnecessary ETT position adjustments and encourage prophylactic adjustments to adjust for significant weight gain or loss. In December 2019, we implemented a novel intervention to provide readily accessible graphs of historical ETT tube position in each neonate with corrected gestational agecycles, we provided education to all members of the multidisciplinary team, we enlisted the Information Technologies Department to …

Improving The Rate Of Ppsv-23 Vaccination In Children With Type I Diabetes, Henry S. Jeng Dr

Research Days

Background/Project Intent (Aim Statement): The routine use of PCV-13 has resulted in a dramatic reduction in the incidence of pneumococcal infections among young children. However, serious pneumococcal infections caused by additional vaccine serotypes continue to occur in older children with high-risk conditions.1 As per the CDC, children with Diabetes should receive the PPSV-23 vaccine beginning at 2 years of age and at least 8 weeks after their last indicated dose of PCV-13.2 A review of division data from March 2016 to November 2018 revealed that only 2.6% of the eligible patient population with Diabetes have received the PPSV-23 vaccine. More …

Instagram As A Tool To Enhance Virtual Recruitment In The Era Of Covid-19, Sophia Hackman, Zuri Hudson, Christian Oliveros, Kyra Mccarty

Research Days

Problem Statement/Question: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, resident recruitment will be virtual for the first time. Interviewees will be unable to visit Children’s Mercy for a tour, will spend less time engaging with current residents, and will be unable to visit Kansas City. The Recruitment Committee sought to understand if social media could be utilized to spread awareness of our pediatric residency program and provide insight into the culture of Children’s Mercy and Kansas City.

Background/Project Intent (Aim Statement): Prior to COVID-19, in person interviews would consist of dinner with current residents the day before the interview and a tour …

Refining The Optimal First Treatment For Pediatric Breast Abscesses, Kayla B. Briggs

Research Days

Background: We previously reported treatment and outcomes of children with untreated, not spontaneously draining (UTND) breast abscesses. What has not been well defined however are those with previously treated, not spontaneously draining (PTND) pediatric breast abscesses. In general, a more conservative approach is favored in children with breast abscesses to avoid damage to the developing breast bud.

Objectives/Goal: We sought to determine if care at a pediatric tertiary referral center impacts disease persistence rate.

Methods/Design: Following IRB approval, patientstherapy.

Results: In all, 114 patients met inclusion criteria, 96 in the UTND group and 18 in the PTND group (Figure 1). …