Measured weight was compared with estimated weight for each child along a Bland-Altman plot, and this was subdivided into each weight group for further comparison. Data were entered into a Microsoft excel file and analysed using the same. ![]() The groups were “Pre-school” (0 – 5 years), “Primary School” (5 – 12 years) and “Secondary School” (> 12 years). 7 For the purposes of analysis, all patients were divided into three age groups for comparison. The weight of each included subject was estimated, using the 2017 Advanced Paediatric Life Support guidelines (sixth edition). Data collected included age, gender, indications for admission, chronic conditions, measured height and measured weight. Patients admitted under either medical or surgical specialists were eligible for inclusion. Inclusion criteria were any patient admitted to the paediatrics ward, aged up to 16 years. The medical charts of 100 paediatric inpatients admitted successively to the inpatient ward or seen in the day ward over the course of May 2017 were reviewed. The study was performed at University Hospital Limerick. Consent was waived by the ethics committee. The aims of this study were to audit the recording of height and weight records amongst paediatric inpatients, assess the accuracy of the APLS 2017 estimated weight guidelines) by comparing measured weights with estimated equivalent), and to compare the difference between estimated weight and measured weight among children of different age groups and presenting complaints.Įthical approval was obtained from the University Hospital Limerick Ethics committee. APLS published a chart, one for male one for female patients, listing a range of ages and their estimated weight (alongside other resuscitation necessities including energy needed for defibrillation in Joules, and amount of normal saline needed for a 20 ml/kg fluid bolus. In our institution, the current Advanced Paediatric Life Support (APLS) 2017 guidelines 7 are used. 6 These estimations may not take into account weight changes with disease e.g. 5 While length-based estimations and parental estimations have been shown to be the best predictors of actual body weight, age-based estimations have shown to also predict ideal body weight. A recent study found that Broselow tape is only highly accurate for patients between 10kg and 25kg. 4īroselow tape is a large tape measure which offers an estimated weight plus emergency drug doses based on the length of a patient. Many methods have been described for estimating a patient’s weight in the acute setting, including a visual estimation, Broselow tape, and mathematical formulae based on age. 2 Recently, STAMP (Screening Tool for the Assessment of Malnutrition in Paediatrics) was introduced at our institution, and requires that all paediatric inpatients have both their height and weight recorded. 1 Weight is important for older children with chronic conditions (such as inflammatory bowel disease) for monitoring disease progression and success of therapy. Infants should have their weight checked regularly to ensure proper nutrition and growth. It is also a simple and reliable tool to measure child health, growth and nutrition. Introduction Weight measurement is fundamental in the management of paediatric inpatients for medication doses, fluid and dietary requirements. Estimation cannot replace an accurate measurement, which is not always feasible in the acute setting. Discussion The current APLS guidelines are reasonably accurate but accuracy decreases with increasing age. Estimated weight was a good predictor for measured weight, however weight was underestimated by between 2.34% and 16.39% of measured weight. Fifty subjects (50%) were Pre-School, 32 (32%) Primary School and 18 (18%) Secondary School. Results Of 100 subjects, 53 (53%) were female and 47 (47%) male. Estimated and measured weight was compared using Bland Altman plots. Measured weights were recorded, and estimated weights were calculated using the APLS 2017 charts. ![]() Methods 100 patient charts were analysed in University Hospital Limerick’s Paediatric unit. The aim of this study was to assess the accuracy of the APLS 2017 estimated weight guidelines. Many methods have been described for estimating a patient’s weight. Introduction Weight measurement is fundamental in the management of paediatric patients.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |