Weighing the Risk Profile of Cervical Spine MRI in Evaluating Pediatric Cervical Spine Injuries.

Objective: Screening for cervical spine injury after blunt trauma is common, but there remains varied practice patterns and clinical uncertainty regarding adequate radiographic evaluation. An oft-cited downside of MRI is the added risk compared to CT in the pediatric population; however, these specific risks have not yet been reported. This study examines the risks of cervical spine MRI in pediatric trauma patients in the context of what value MRI adds.

North American survey on the post-neuroimaging management of children with mild head injuries.

OBJECTIVEThere remains uncertainty regarding the appropriate level of care and need for repeating neuroimaging among children with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) complicated by intracranial injury (ICI). This study's objective was to investigate physician practice patterns and decision-making processes for these patients in order to identify knowledge gaps and highlight avenues for future investigation.METHODSThe authors surveyed residents, fellows, and attending physicians from the following pediatric specialties: emergency medicine; general surgery; neurosurgery; and critical care.

The Economic and Clinical Impact of Sustained Use of a Progressive Mobility Program in a Neuro-ICU.

Objective: To investigate a progressive mobility program in a neurocritical care population with the hypothesis that the benefits and outcomes of the program (e.g., decreased length of stay) would have a significant positive economic impact.

National Analysis of 2454 Pediatric Moyamoya Admissions and the Effect of Hospital Volume on Outcomes.

Background And Purpose: Comprehensive multicenter data on treatment of pediatric moyamoya in the United States is lacking. We sought to identify national trends in the diagnosis and treatment of this disease.

Methods: A total of 2454 moyamoya admissions from 1997 to 2012 were identified from the Kids Inpatient Database.

A prospective time-series quality improvement trial of a standardized analgesia protocol to reduce postoperative pain among neurosurgery patients.

OBJECTIVE The inclusion of the pain management domain in the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey now ties patients' perceptions of pain and analgesia to financial reimbursement for inpatient stays. Therefore, the authors wanted to determine if a quality improvement initiative centered on a standardized analgesia protocol could significantly reduce postoperative pain among neurosurgery patients. METHODS The authors implemented a 10-month, prospective, interrupted time-series trial of a quality improvement initiative.