The ongoing indirect effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on a pediatric emergency department.

Introduction: The SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus pandemic may cause significant morbidity and mortality in adults, yet severe cases are rare among children. The indirect impact of the pandemic on health care delivery in general and pediatric emergency department (PED) visits in particular has been widely reported.

Aims: To assess the impact of the pandemic and the social restrictions imposed in its wake on PED visits and hospitalization rates in our Israeli medical center.

Stress Hyperglycemia in a Pediatric Emergency Department Setting and its Relationship to the Underlying Disease and Outcome.

Background: Stress hyperglycemia (SH) is a common finding in patients in pediatric emergency departments (PED) and has been related to increased morbidity and mortality.

Objectives: To assess the incidence of SH among children visiting the PED. To identify which diseases predispose patients to SH and whether they indicate a worse outcome.

The prognostic value of C-reactive protein for children with pneumonia.

Aim: To measure the prognostic value of C-reactive protein (CRP) and its ability to predict pneumonia-associated complications.

Methods: A 3.75-years retrospective cohort analysis of all paediatric emergency department visits with a discharge diagnosis of pneumonia.

The rates of hospital admissions and return visits to a rapidly growing pediatric emergency department as measures of quality of care.

Background: Return visits to the emergency department are viewed as a quality measure of patient management. Avoiding unnecessary admissions to the ward can potentially cause an increase in return visits, thus effecting quality assessment.

Methods: After implementing an educational process the relationship between admissions and return visits was assessed over time at a rapidly growing pediatric emergency department.

Complicated community acquired pneumonia in childhood: Different types, clinical course, and outcome.

Unlabelled: The incidence of pediatric community acquired complicated pneumonia (PCACP) is increasing. Questions addressed: Are different types of PCACP one disease? How do different treatment protocols affect the outcome?

Methods: Retrospective analysis of medical records of PCACP hospitalizations in the three major hospitals in Jerusalem in the years 2001-2010 for demographics, clinical presentation, management, and outcome.

Results: Of the 144 children (51% aged 1-4 years), 91% of Jewish origin; 40% had para-pneumonic effusion (PPE), 40% empyema (EMP), and 20% necrotizing pneumonia (NP).