Biomedical subjects

Stanley Z Trooskin

Publications and source records attributed to Stanley Z Trooskin.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2005

Risk factors for blunt thoracic aortic injury in children.

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE: Because blunt thoracic aortic injury is rare in children, a high index of suspicion is needed to identify this injury. The purpose of this study was to use a large national trauma database to define the risk factors for blunt thoracic aortic injury in children. METHODS: Using the National Trauma Database, the authors compared patient demographics, mechanism of injury, and associated injuries between children sustaining blunt trauma with and without a thoracic aortic injury. Factors independently associated with this injury were identified using multivariate methods. RESULTS: Among 26,940 children with a blunt mechanism of injury, 34 (0.1%) children sustained a thoracic aortic injury, 14 (41%) of whom died. Thoracic aortic injuries were independently associated with age, injury sustained as an occupant in a motor vehicle crash, and severe injuries (Abbreviated Injury Scale value of > or =3) involving the head, thorax (other than aorta), abdomen, and lower extremities. CONCLUSIONS: Older children involved in a motor vehicle crash with severe head, torso, and lower extremity injuries are a group at high risk for injury to the thoracic aorta. These easily identifiable risk factors may facilitate more rapid identification of this rare and potentially fatal injury.

Accidents, Traffic↗

PubMed2004

Variability in trauma center outcomes for patients with moderate intracranial injury.

BACKGROUND: The variability of outcome between Trauma Centers has not been extensively studied as a possible avenue for performance improvement. Trauma Center variability in severity-adjusted survival for patients with moderate intracranial injury (MII) was studied in order to determine the association of MII-related process of care variables with outcomes. The analytic results were supplemented with peer review of MII patients with unexpected outcomes and identified potential process of care variables. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study was undertaken based on data submitted to a statewide trauma center database from July '95 through June '98. MII patients had one or more selected ICD-9-CM codes with an AIS-90 severity score of 3 or 4 but no higher. Severity adjustment was done using case matching and a logistic function based New Model that appropriately accounts for patients intubated on Emergency Department arrival. MII-related process of care variables derived from the database were identified and their relationship with outcome were evaluated individually and using multivariate methods. Trauma center personnel conducted standardized peer reviews. RESULTS: The study included data from 6765 patients treated at 26 trauma centers. Two centers (2PZW) had significantly more survivors than expected by both severity adjustment methods. Three had significantly fewer survivors than expected (3NZW). By several measures, patients treated in the 2PZW centers were more seriously injured and older than those in the 3NZW centers. CT of the head performed in the treating hospital was the only process of care variable associated with outcome in multivariate evaluations. Peer review also found little association between process of care variables and patient outcomes. However, peer review reported that 23.7% of unexpected deaths identified by case matching or the New Model were preventable or potentially preventable. Peer review also identified as medically unnecessary significant percentages of patients with unexpectedly long stays in hospital (26.4%) or in ICU (17.3%) identified by case matching. Nearly 45% of unexpected complications were judged preventable or potentially preventable. CONCLUSIONS: Two severity adjustment methods identified significant variability in trauma center outcomes for patients with MII. The difference in outcomes between the centers with better than expected (2PZW) and poorer than expected outcomes (3NZW) was substantial. Peer review identified significant opportunities for reducing unexpected deaths, stays in hospital and in ICU, and the occurrence of complications. Trauma registry data and peer reviews found little relationship between available process of care variables and patient outcomes. This study should stimulate discussions to understand reasons for outcome variability and ways to reduce it.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

Low-technology, cost-efficient strategies for reducing medication errors.

Medication-related errors are a common cause of patient morbidity and mortality. However, a number of strategies use the latest technology, such as computers and associated hardware and software, to reduce medication-related errors. In this era of reduced operating margins for most hospitals, strategies that employ physician order entry and bar code-labeled medication systems may be prohibitively expensive. Cost-efficient methods are available that can make simple changes in the way medications are mixed, stored, prescribed, and delivered, and they have the potential to have a major effect on medication safety. These methods do not rely on purchasing new hardware or expensive software. They include changing the culture within the hospital to one that focuses on patient safety, developing standardized protocols, developing an education program that provides direct feedback, and using protocols for high-risk medications. Coordinating hospital efforts with regional organizations may also be beneficial in reducing the occurrence of medication-related errors.

Clinical Protocols↗

PubMed2002

Time to laparotomy for intra-abdominal bleeding from trauma does affect survival for delays up to 90 minutes.

OBJECTIVE: We examined the relationship between survival and time in the emergency department (ED) before laparotomy for hypotensive patients bleeding from abdominal injuries. METHODS: Patients in the Pennsylvania Trauma Systems Foundation trauma registry with isolated abdominal vascular, solid organ, or wall injuries grade 3 to 6 and hypotension were identified. Deaths were predicted from the prehospital time, systolic blood pressure (SBP) on ED admission, and time in the ED before either laparotomy or ED death. RESULTS: Two-hundred forty-three patients met the criteria. SBP ranged from 30 to 90 mm Hg. Time to the ED ranged from 7 to 185 minutes. Time in the ED ranged from 7 to 915 minutes. Overall, 98 patients died (40%). The risk ratio for the SBP increased, as expected, as SBP dropped. The risk ratio for time spent in the ED before laparotomy increased until 90 minutes, then significantly decreased below all earlier values. Logistic regression on the 165 patients spending 90 minutes or less in the ED showed that the probability of death increased with time in the ED. The increase was as much as 0.35% per minute. CONCLUSION: Among patients in a trauma registry who were hypotensive on arrival in the ED and had major injuries isolated to the abdomen requiring emergency laparotomy, the probability of death showed a relationship to both the extent of hypotension and the length of time in the ED for patients who were in the ED for 90 minutes or less. The probability of death increased approximately 1% for each 3 minutes in the ED.

Abdominal Injuries↗