Table 2. Underlying infections and organ dysfunctions of Emergency Department visits by pediatric patients with suspected severe sepsis (age <18 yrs).
| Variable | Number of raw observations | Total number of ED severe sepsis 2001–2009 (estimated 1000s) | Annual number of ED severe sepsis (estimated 1000s) | Percentage of ED severe sepsis (95% CI) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| N = 855, 493 | N = 95, 055 | |||
| “Infection” | ||||
| Fever (<96.8 or ≥100.4 F) on ED triage | 154 | 489 | 54 | 58.4 (50.6–65.8) |
| ED ICD-9 defined infection of respiratory system | 109 | 356 | 40 | 41.6 (33.5–50.2) |
| ED ICD-9 defined infection of genitourinary, digestive, nervous, musculoskeletal, or circulatory systems or other infections (parasitic, skin, or associated with pregnancy) | 50 | 183 | 20 | 21.4 (15.4–28.8) |
| “Organ Dysfunction” | ||||
| Hypotension on ED triage | 201 | 632 | 70 | 73.8 (65.9–80.5) |
| ED ICD-9 defined respiratory dysfunction | 55 | 187 | 21 | 21.9 (15.8–29.4) |
| ED cardiovascular, hematological, neurologic, hepatic, or other organ dysfunction | 16a | 56a | 6a | 6.6 (3.2–13.1)a |
Notes.
CI = confidence interval; SBP = systolic blood pressure. “Infection” was defined as the presence of fever or hypothermia (T < 36 or ≥ 38°C), or an ICD-9 diagnosis code for infection. “Organ Dysfunction” was defined as the presence of hypotension (based upon age-appropriate ED systolic blood pressure), provision of endotracheal intubation, or an ICD-9 diagnosis code for organ dysfunction.
a
Estimate based upon <30 raw observations, considered unreliable by the National Center for Health Statistics.