Rabies virus infection in a 21-year-old male presenting with ascending paralysis after a bat scratch.

A 21-year-old, previously healthy male presented to hospital following 1 week of bilateral asymmetric ascending paralysis, odynophagia, and dysphagia. Initial magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the spine revealed an abnormal increased T2 signal with predominant dorsal column involvement and sparing of white matter throughout the cervical cord and extending to T5. The initial presumptive diagnosis was an acute infectious, versus inflammatory, myelitis.

Pediatric observation status: are we overlooking a growing population in children's hospitals?

Background: Inpatient administrative datasets often exclude observation stays, as observation is considered to be outpatient care. The extent to which this status is applied to pediatric hospitalizations is not known.

Objective: To characterize trends in observation status code utilization and 1-day stays among children admitted from the emergency department (ED), and to compare patient characteristics and outcomes associated with observation versus inpatient stays.