Adriana Herrera, Matt Hall, Marshall Alex Ahearn, Arshiya Ahuja, Kathleen K Bradford, Robert A Campbell, Ashmita Chatterjee, Hannah Y Coletti, Virginia L Crowder, Ria Dancel, Melissa Diaz, Jennifer Fuchs, Jessica Guidici, Emilee Lewis, John R Stephens, Ashley G Sutton, Alison Sweeney, Kelley M Ward, Steven Weinberg, Eric K Zwemer, Wade N Harrison
OBJECTIVES: Racial and ethnic differences in drug testing have been described among adults and newborns. Less is known regarding testing patterns among children and adolescents. We sought to describe the association between race and ethnicity and drug testing at US children's hospitals. We hypothesized that non-Hispanic White children undergo drug testing less often than children from other groups. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of emergency department (ED)-only encounters and hospitalizations for children diagnosed with a condition for which drug testing may be indicated (abuse or neglect, burns, malnutrition, head injury, vomiting, altered mental status or syncope, psychiatric, self-harm, and seizure) at 41 children's hospitals participating in the Pediatric Health Information System during 2018 and 2021...
February 21, 2024: Journal of Hospital Medicine: An Official Publication of the Society of Hospital Medicine