Table 4:
Comparison of Medical Examiner and Non-Medical Examiner Autopsies
| Category | Variable | Medical Examiner Autopsies (n=47) | Non-Medical Examiner Autopsies (n=53) | Significance Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Socio-Demographics | ||||
| Gender (%) | 0.661 | |||
| Male | 26 (49.1) | 27 (50.9) | ||
| Female | 21 (44.7) | 26 (55.3) | ||
| Age, median [IQR] | 1.1 [0.3–8.6] | 0.8 [0.0–5.9] | 0.172 | |
| Age category (%) | 0.0033 | |||
| 0 to <14 days | 0 (0.0) | 13 (100.0) | ||
| 14 days to <1 month | 1 (50.0) | 1 (50.0) | ||
| 1 month to <12 months | 20 (55.6) | 16 (44.4) | ||
| 12 months to <60 months | 11 (61.1) | 7 (38.9) | ||
| 60 months to < 144 months | 10 (45.5) | 12 (54.5) | ||
| >144 months | 5 (55.6) | 4 (44.4) | ||
| Payer Type | 0.123,4 | |||
| Government | 29 (43.3) | 38 (56.7) | ||
| Commercial | 13 (54.2) | 11 (45.8) | ||
| Other | 3 (100.0) | 0 (0.0) | ||
| Missing | 2 (33.3) | 4 (66.7) | ||
| Baseline Function | ||||
| Baseline FSS, median [IQR] | 6 [6–6] | 6 [6–9] | <0.0012 | |
| Underlying Conditions | ||||
| Cancer Diagnosis: Present | 1 (20.0) | 4 (80.0) | 0.373 | |
| Absent | 46 (48.4) | 49 (51.6) | ||
| Congenital Heart Disease: Present | 2 (6.1) | 31 (93.9) | <0.0011 | |
| Absent | 45 (67.2) | 22 (32.8) | ||
| Events prior to admission | ||||
| Trauma: Yes | 14 (100.0) | 0 (0.0) | <0.0011 | |
| No | 33 (38.4) | 53 (61.6) | ||
| Cardiac Arrest: Yes | 29 (85.3) | 5 (14.7) | <0.0011 | |
| No | 18 (27.3) | 48 (72.7) | ||
| Admission Status | ||||
| Elective (scheduled) | 4 (23.5) | 13 (76.5) | 0.0331 | |
| Emergent (unscheduled) | 43 (51.8) | 40 (48.2) | ||
| Admission Source | 0.0051 | |||
| Post-Operative, n (%) | 6 (28.6) | 15 (71.4) | ||
| Inpatient, n (%) | 5 (23.8) | 16 (76.2) | ||
| Direct Admission from Referral Hospital, n (%) | 22 (61.1) | 14 (38.9) | ||
| Emergency Department, n (%) | 14 (63.6) | 8 (36.4) | ||
| Primary System of Dysfunction | <0.0013 | |||
| Respiratory, n (%) | 8 (36.4) | 14 (63.6) | ||
| Cardiovascular, n (%) | 22 (44.9) | 27 (55.1) | ||
| Cancer, n (%) | 0 (0.0) | 2 (100.0) | ||
| Neurologic, n (%) | 16 (88.9) | 2 (11.1) | ||
| Other, n (%) | 1 (11.1) | 8 (88.9) | ||
| Severity of Illness | ||||
| PRISM Score, median [IQR] | 23 [17–31] | 11 [5–19] | <0.0012 | |
| Resource Use | ||||
| PICU LOS, median [IQR] | 2.8 [1.1–6.3] | 4.2 [1.4–22.0] | 0.112 | |
| Hospital LOS, median [IQR] | 2.8 [1.1–6.8] | 8.2 [2.4–42.0] | 0.0032 | |
| ICU Therapies | ||||
| Mechanical Ventilation, n (%) | 46 (97.9) | 49 (92.5) | 0.373 | |
| Vasoactive Agent Infusions, n (%) | 40 (85.1) | 48 (90.6) | 0.401 | |
| Antibiotics, n (%) | 37 (78.7) | 49 (92.5) | 0.0481 | |
| Steroids, n (%) | 16 (34.0) | 32 (60.4) | 0.0091 | |
| Location of Death | 0.253 | |||
| PICU, n (%) | 46 (97.9) | 49 (92.5) | ||
| Hospital General Care, n (%) | 1 (2.1) | 1 (1.9) | ||
| Other, n (%) | 0 (0.0) | 3 (5.7) |
1.
Chi-squared
2.
Wilcoxon Rank Sum
3.
Fisher’s Exact
4.
Missing variables excluded (2 patients with ME autopsies and 4 patients with non-ME autopsies)
IQR: Interquartile range; FSS: Functional Status Scale; PRISM: Pediatric Risk of Mortality
PICU: Pediatric Intensive Care Unit; LOS: Length of stay