Clinical and ultrasonographic findings associated with longer hospitalization in children with intussusception: A multicenter retrospective cohort study
Wen Yang, Binbin He, Dong You, Pengfei Zhang, Meng Jin, Huan Liu, Gen XiaObjective
To evaluate clinical, laboratory, and ultrasonographic factors associated with prolonged hospitalization in children with intussusception.
Methods
This multicenter retrospective cohort study included 92 children with intussusception treated at three hospitals in Yinchuan, China. Prolonged hospitalization was defined as a hospital stay of 4 days or longer. Clinical, laboratory, ultrasonographic, and treatment-related variables were compared between children with short and prolonged hospitalization. Univariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed, with study center included as a categorical covariate in the final model.
Results
Of the 92 children, 42 had prolonged hospitalization. Compared with children with shorter hospital stays, those with prolonged hospitalization more frequently had fever (28.6% vs. 10.0%, p = 0.044), bloody stool (9.5% vs. 0.0%, p = 0.040), and bowel wall edema on ultrasonography (83.3% vs. 56.0%, p = 0.010). In the center-adjusted multivariable model, bowel wall edema (adjusted odds ratio = 5.368, 95% confidence interval: 1.654–17.417, p = 0.005) and fever (adjusted odds ratio = 6.610, 95% confidence interval: 1.647–26.532, p = 0.008) were associated with prolonged hospitalization.
Conclusions
Bowel wall edema documented on routine ultrasonography and fever were associated with a longer inpatient course after adjustment for study center. These findings may provide additional information for identifying children at risk of a longer inpatient course and guiding short-term clinical monitoring; however, they should not be used as standalone criteria for hospitalization duration or discharge decisions.