CHANGE IN FUNCTIONAL STATUS AMONG CHILDREN TREATED IN THE INTENSIVE CARE UNIT AFTER INJURY

Background Because pediatric trauma-related mortality continue to decline, metrics assessing morbidity are needed to evaluate the impact of treatment after injury. Based of its value for assessing children with traumatic brain injuries and other critical illnesses, Functional Status Scale (FSS), a tool that measures function in six domains (communication, feeding, mental, motor, sensory and respiratory), was evaluated as an outcome measure for the overall population of injured children. Methods Children with at least one injury (Abbreviated Injury Scale [AIS] severity ≥1) surviving to discharge between December 2011 and April 2013 were identified in a previous study of intensive care unit admissions. Morbidity was defined as additional morbidity in any domain (domain FSS change ≥2) and additional overall morbidity (total FSS change ≥3 or ‘new domain morbidity’) between preinjury status and discharge. Associations between injury profiles and the development of morbidity were analyzed. Results We identified 553 injured children, with an average of 2.0 ± 1.9 injuries. New domain and overall morbidity were observed in 17.0% and 11.0% of patients, respectively. New domain morbidity was associated with an increasing number of body regions with an injury with AIS≥ 2 (P

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