Justine Heather Cohen-Silver1, Barbara Muskat2, Savithiri Ratnapalan3. 1. The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada justine.cohen@mail.utoronto.ca. 2. The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. 3. The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada The Dalla Lana School of Public Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada The University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: This is a retrospective chart review of autistic patients presenting to the emergency department (ED) in a tertiary care pediatric center during the year 2011. RESULTS: There were 160 ED visits by 130 patients, 25% of visits were repeated, and 20% were admitted to the hospital. There were 126 (79%) male and 34 (21%) female patients mean age of 12 years, 79% had comorbid health conditions. Forty percent were CTAS 2 (Canadian Triage Acuity Score) acuity, 42% of visits were CTAS 3 acuity, and 7% rated their pain as "severe." Visits were for behavior (10%), neurological concern (13%), 3% dental related, and the remainder were for gastrointestinal infections and other complaints. Average length of stay was 6 hours 21 minutes, with 2-hour wait to start assessment with physician. CONCLUSIONS: Autism is a prevalent diagnosis and patients with autism are accessing the ED. We hope to use these demographic findings to better serve these patients and their families.
BACKGROUND: This is a retrospective chart review of autisticpatients presenting to the emergency department (ED) in a tertiary care pediatric center during the year 2011. RESULTS: There were 160 ED visits by 130 patients, 25% of visits were repeated, and 20% were admitted to the hospital. There were 126 (79%) male and 34 (21%) female patients mean age of 12 years, 79% had comorbid health conditions. Forty percent were CTAS 2 (Canadian Triage Acuity Score) acuity, 42% of visits were CTAS 3 acuity, and 7% rated their pain as "severe." Visits were for behavior (10%), neurological concern (13%), 3% dental related, and the remainder were for gastrointestinal infections and other complaints. Average length of stay was 6 hours 21 minutes, with 2-hour wait to start assessment with physician. CONCLUSIONS:Autism is a prevalent diagnosis and patients with autism are accessing the ED. We hope to use these demographic findings to better serve these patients and their families.
Authors: Lonnie Zwaigenbaum; David B Nicholas; Barbara Muskat; Christopher Kilmer; Amanda S Newton; William R Craig; Savithiri Ratnapalan; Justine Cohen-Silver; Andrea Greenblatt; Wendy Roberts; Raphael Sharon Journal: J Autism Dev Disord Date: 2016-05
Authors: Yona Lunsky; Jonathan A Weiss; Melissa Paquette-Smith; Anna Durbin; Ami Tint; Anna M Palucka; Elspeth Bradley Journal: BMJ Open Date: 2017-07-18 Impact factor: 2.692