Healthcare Burden and Resource Utilization After Pediatric Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome: A Secondary Analysis

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Updated: Jul 1, 2025

Surfactant Depletion Combined with Injurious Ventilation Results in a Reproducible Model of the Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome ARDS
06:22

Surfactant Depletion Combined with Injurious Ventilation Results in a Reproducible Model of the Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome ARDS

Published on: April 7, 2021

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Stefanie G Ames1, Aline B Maddux2, Lauren Burgunder1

  • 1Department of Pediatrics, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT.

Pediatric Critical Care Medicine : a Journal of the Society of Critical Care Medicine and the World Federation of Pediatric Intensive and Critical Care Societies
|March 6, 2024
PubMed

Insights

Pediatric survivors of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) experience significant family healthcare burden and high resource utilization, including medication needs and hospital readmissions, up to nine months post-discharge. Addressing care coordination gaps is crucial for improving outcomes.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Critical Care Medicine
  • Health Services Research

Background:

  • Pediatric acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a critical illness with potential long-term consequences for survivors.
  • Understanding the post-discharge healthcare burden on families and resource utilization is essential for comprehensive care.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To quantify family healthcare burden and health resource utilization in pediatric ARDS survivors at 3 and 9 months post-discharge.
  • To identify factors associated with family healthcare burden in this population.

Main Methods:

  • Secondary analysis of a prospective, multisite cohort study involving critically ill children with ARDS.
  • Data collected via proxy-report surveys at 3 and 9 months post-ARDS, assessing family care burden and child health resource use (medications, ED visits, readmissions).
  • Multivariable logistic regression used to evaluate patient characteristics associated with family healthcare burden.

Main Results:

  • At 3 months, 62% of families reported healthcare burden, with 22% experiencing unmet care coordination needs. At 9 months, 52% reported burden, with 16% unmet needs.
  • Significant health resource utilization included high rates of prescription medication use (82% at 3 months, 65% at 9 months), ED visits (18% at 3 months, 30% at 9 months), and hospital readmissions (22% at 3 months, 25% at 9 months).
  • Family healthcare burden was associated with medication use at both time points. Pre-illness functional status and chronic conditions, not acute illness characteristics, were associated with burden at 3 months.

Conclusions:

  • Pediatric ARDS survivors face substantial family healthcare burden and high health resource utilization in the months following critical illness.
  • There is a need for improved care coordination strategies to simplify post-discharge care, such as medication management, to alleviate family burden.
  • Future research should focus on interventions to reduce the long-term impact of ARDS on pediatric survivors and their families.
Abstract

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