Animated Picture to Improve Provider Adherence to CT Scan for Head Injury Rule

Children's Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota

Status

Completed

Conditions

Minor Head Injury

Treatments

Behavioral: Pop-up picture

Study type

Interventional

Funder types

Other

Identifiers

NCT01514071

1103-040

Details and patient eligibility

About

It is difficult for Pediatric Emergency Department providers to recognize clinically significant head injuries that are likely to require neurosurgical intervention or close monitoring from those that can be safely discharged.

Research Question How do a combination of education and an animated picture depicting the PECARN CT Head Injury rules impact compliance to these rules and reduce unnecessary head CT scans?

Design This is a within subject, repeated measures study design.

Enrollment

746 estimated patients

Sex

All

Ages

Under 18 years old

Volunteers

No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

Patients presenting to Children's ED will be included if they:
Are between 0 and 18 years of age (inclusive)
Receive a discharge diagnosis of head injury
Present to the ED within 24 hours of the head injury
GCS of 14 or greater

Exclusion criteria

Patients will be excluded if they :
Had a CT scans done in an outside transferring institution
Have obvious penetrating head injuries
Had a trivial injury mechanisms such as ground-level falls or walking or running into stationary objects
Have no signs or symptoms of head trauma other than scalp abrasions and lacerations.
Have known brain tumors, pre-existing neurological disorders complicating assessment, ventricular shunts, bleeding disorders