Table 1. Baseline characteristics of the study population.
| Pre-intervention n = 597 |
Intervention n = 402 |
|
|---|---|---|
| Characteristic | ||
| General characteristics | ||
| Male sex | 364/597 (61%) | 246/402 (61%) |
| Age in months | 17 (9–30) | 17 (9–31) |
| Season | ||
| Spring | 76/597 (13%) | 114/402 (28%) |
| Summer | 55/597 (9%) | 49/402 (12%) |
| Autumn | 198/597 (33%) | 88/402 (22%) |
| Winter | 268/597 (45%) | 151/402 (38%) |
| Way of referral to ED | ||
| General practitioner | 441/578 (76%) | 295/379 (78%) |
| Self | 66/578 (11%) | 45/379 (12%) |
| Other healthcare professional | 71/578 (12%) | 39/379 (10%) |
| Triage level | ||
| Immediate or very urgent | 306/506 (60%) | 182/332 (55%) |
| Urgent | 146/506 (29%) | 121/332 (36%) |
| Standard or non-urgent | 54/506 (11%) | 29/332 (9%) |
| Signs and symptoms | ||
| Ill appearance* | 220/572 (38%) | 138/400 (35%) |
| Duration of fever in days | 2 (1–4) | 2 (1–4) |
| Temperature in°C | 38.8 (38.1–39.5) | 38.9 (38.1–39.5) |
| Hypoxia (oxygen saturation < 94%) | 144/595 (24%) | 74/401 (18%) |
| Tachycardia | 416/595 (70%) | 274/402 (68%) |
| Tachypnoea | 487/581 (84%) | 315/402 (78%) |
| Retractions | 376/578 (65%) | 237/401 (59%) |
| Dyspnoea | 432/581 (74%) | 290/402 (72%) |
| Wheezing | 233/565 (41%) | 132/395 (33%) |
| Prolonged capillary refill (≥2 seconds) | 96/553 (17%) | 19/401 (5%) |
| Management | ||
| C-reactive protein test performed | 372/597 (62%) | 380/402 (95%) |
| C-reactive protein in mg/l | 19 (7–44) | 18 (7–38) |
| Chest X-ray performed | 109/597 (18%) | 49/402 (12%) |
| Discharge diagnosis | ||
| Pneumonia | 204/594 (34%) | 110/401 (27%) |
| Bronchiolitis | 117/594 (20%) | 79/401 (20%) |
| Upper RTI | 197/594 (33%) | 156/401 (39%) |
| Viral induced wheeze | 69/594 (12%) | 49/401 (12%) |
| Other | 7/594 (1%) | 7/401 (2%) |
| Hospitalisation | 329/597 (55%) | 181/402 (45%) |
| Length of stay in days | 3 (2–5) | 3 (2–5) |
| Reason for hospitalisation | ||
| Oxygen therapy | 235/329 (71%) | 132/180 (73%) |
| Intake of antibiotics | 8/329 (2%) | 2/180 (1%) |
| Nebuliser bronchodilator | 10/329 (3%) | 4/180 (2%) |
| Monitoring | 69/329 (21%) | 39/180 (22%) |
| Other | 7/329 (2%) | 3/180 (2%) |
| Type of antibiotic prescribed | ||
| Amoxicillin | 152/179 (85%) | 84/101 (83%) |
| Amoxicillin/clavulanic acid | 8/179 (4%) | 6/101 (6%) |
| Azithromycin | 17/179 (9%) | 4/101 (4%) |
| Cefuroxime | 2/179 (1%) | 1/101 (1%) |
| Other | 0/179 (0%) | 5/101 (5%) |
| Unknown | 0/179 (0%) | 1/101 (1%) |
Categorical variables are presented as number/total (percentage), and continuous variables as median (interquartile range). The pre-intervention and intervention populations in a stepped-wedge trial cannot be directly compared, but should be adjusted for a secular time trend [22].
*Based on physician’s judgment (yes/no).
ED, emergency department; RTI, respiratory tract infection.