Primary Care Ondansetron Use and Subsequent Emergency Department Utilization in Children With Acute Gastroenteritis
Abstract
AIM
Evaluate whether outpatient ondansetron prescription or in-office administration during a primary care (PC) visit was associated with subsequent emergency department (ED) utilization and downstream healthcare recourse utilization among children with acute gastroenteritis (AGE).
METHODS
We conducted a retrospective cohort study of children aged 6 months to < 18 years presenting to 39 PC clinics with vomiting, diarrhoea, or AGE between 2017 and 2023. Only the first eligible visit for each child was included. The primary outcome was an ED visit within 7 days of the index PC visit. Secondary outcomes included ED acuity, hospital admission, and ED healthcare resource utilization among children subsequently presenting to the ED. Associations were evaluated using logistic and negative binomial regression models.
RESULTS
We included 11 343 unique children. Ondansetron was prescribed during 3789 (33.4%) index PC visits, including 782 (20.6%) children who also received an in-office dose. Overall, 63 children (0.6%) presented to the ED within 7 days. Outpatient ondansetron prescription was not associated with subsequent ED utilization (OR 1.07, 95% CI 0.63-1.78; p = 0.798). Among children subsequently presenting to the ED, prior ondansetron exposure was not associated with ED acuity, hospital admission, or overall healthcare resource utilization, although fewer laboratory tests were performed (IRR 0.45, 95% CI 0.22-0.89; p = 0.026).
CONCLUSION
Outpatient ondansetron prescription…
How strong is the evidence?
Evidence Hub reads this as a cohort study, done in people. Its evidence level is 3 of 5 (Moderate · trial / cohort / secondary analysis). Trials without a large randomized design, cohorts and secondary analyses give moderate evidence. Reported size: 63 participants or records.
Read the paper
Related studies
- Gastrointestinal manifestations in COVID-19
- COVID-19 and Gastrointestinal Disease: Implications for the Gastroenterologist
- Treatment of norovirus infections: moving antivirals from the bench to the bedside
- Abstracts of the 2012 International Congress of the European Association of Poisons Centres and Clinical Toxicologists, 25 May–1 June 2012, London, UK
- Global Research Trends in Irritable Bowel Syndrome: A Bibliometric and Visualized Study
- Rapid enteric testing to permit targeted antimicrobial therapy, with and without Lactobacillus reuteri probiotics, for paediatric acute diarrhoeal disease in Botswana: A pilot, randomized, factorial, controlled trial
Go deeper in Evidence Hub
Evidence Hub adds a study data sheet (design, sample size, evidence level, key numbers), an AI summary and a chat grounded in the paper's text.