Accuracy of parents and health care professionals at estimating infant emesis volume.

Objective: To quantify visual estimation inaccuracies of infant emesis by parents and caregivers (P/Cs) and health care professionals (HCPs).

Methods: A single-blinded survey was performed in which P/Cs and HCPs visually estimated predetermined volumes of simulated emesis spilled on receiving blankets or pyjamas.

Results: HCPs' estimations of volumes 1 and 3 were 150.4% and 145.1%, respectively, of the actual volumes, and their estimations of volumes 2 and 4 were 81.9% and 85.8%, respectively, of the actual volumes. This was, on average, significantly more accurate than the P/Cs' estimations (P<0.001 to P=0.002), which ranged from 130.4% to 275.7% of the actual volumes.

Conclusion: P/Cs and HCPs were, on average, highly inaccurate at visually estimating simulated emesis volume, an important consideration when making clinical judgments based on these estimations. In addition, HCPs now have an evidence-based tool to use in their practice when reassuring and counselling anxious parents.