Researchers from Mayo Clinic found that visual aids designed for parents of children with minor head trauma may improve communication with physicians, specifically to discuss the risks and benefits associated with CT imaging compared to active monitoring of symptoms, according to research published online Sept. 21 in JAMA Network Open.
According to the CDC, more than 450,000 children are evaluated in emergency departments in the U.S. for head trauma every year. While less than 10 percent of CT scans of children with minor head trauma show evidence of brain injury and significantly fewer require neurosurgical intervention, CT poses risks such as radiation exposure that parents must actively consider.
"When the decision to obtain a CT scan in a child with minor head trauma is not clear, this study shows that involving the guardian with a visual aid helps them understand the tradeoffs, and leads to better engagement, education and trust in their physician," said senior author Nathan Kuppermann, MD, MPH, professor and chair of emergency medicine at UC Davis Medical Center, in a prepared statement. "Shared decision-making likely has a role in many similar situations where the clinical decision is not clear.”
The multi-center study was conducted at seven emergency medicine departments with 172 clinicians from April 2014 to September 2016.
A total of 971 pediatric patients between the ages of 2 and 18 who were tested for minor head trauma. Of the children, 493 received decision aids and 478 received standard care.
Homme and colleagues found that the parents using visual aids had greater knowledge of traumatic brain injury, were more involved in discussing imaging options, and had more trust in their physicians. Although the researchers did not note reduced ED CT rate in this population, fewer services were used in the week following injury.
A recent graduate from Dominican University (IL) with a bachelor’s in journalism, Melissa joined TriMed’s Chicago team in 2017 covering all aspects of health imaging. She’s a fan of singing and playing guitar, elephants, a good cup of tea, and her golden retriever Cooper.