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Evaluating the utility and quality of large administrative databases in pediatric spinal neurosurgery research

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to assess the quality of articles utilizing large administrative databases to answer questions related to pediatric spinal neurosurgery by quantifying their adherence to standard reporting guidelines.

Methods

A systematic literature search was conducted with search terms including “pediatric” and “neurosurgery,” associated neurosurgical diagnoses, and the names of known databases. Study abstracts were reviewed to identify clinical studies involving pediatric populations, spine-related pathology or procedures, and large administrative databases. Included studies were graded using the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) criteria.

Results

A total of 28 papers of the initial 1496 identified met inclusion criteria. These papers involved 10 databases and had a mean study period of 11.46 ± 12.27 years. The subjects of these research papers were undergoing treatment of scoliosis (n = 5), spinal cord injury (n = 5), spinal cord tumors (n = 9), and spine surgery in general (n = 9). The mean STROBE score was 19.41 ± 2.02 (out of 22).

Conclusion

Large administrative databases are commonly used within pediatric spine-related neurosurgical research to cover a broad spectrum of research questions and study topics. The heterogeneity of research to this point encourages the continued use of large databases to better understand treatment and diagnostic trends, perioperative and long-term outcomes, and rare pathologies within pediatric spinal neurosurgery.

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Availability of data and material

All data are included in the paper.

Abbreviations

ACS:

American College of Surgeons

AIS:

Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis

EDS:

Ehlers-Danlos syndrome

HCUP:

Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project

KID:

Kids’ Inpatient Database

LOS:

Length of stay

MVA:

Motor vehicle accident

NCDB:

National Cancer Database

NIS:

National Inpatient Sample

NRD:

Nationwide Readmissions Database

NSQIP-P:

National Surgical Quality Improvement Program–Pediatric

PHIS:

Pediatric Health Information System

SCI:

Spinal cord injury

SEER:

Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results

SID:

State Inpatient Database

SRS M&M:

Scoliosis Research Society Morbidity and Mortality Database

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Acknowledgements

We thank Kristin Kraus, MSc, for her editorial assistance.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurosurgery, Clinical Neurosciences Center, University of Utah, 175 N. Medical Drive East, Salt Lake City, UT, 84132, USA

    Sarah Nguyen, Douglas L. Brockmeyer & Michael Karsy

  2. School of Medicine, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA

    Parker Cox & Justin M. Campbell

Authors
  1. Sarah Nguyen
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  2. Parker Cox
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  3. Justin M. Campbell
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  4. Douglas L. Brockmeyer
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  5. Michael Karsy
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Contributions

Study conception and design: Sarah Nguyen, Michael Karsy; data collection and analysis: Sarah Nguyen, Parker Cox, Justin Campbell, Michael Karsy; supervision: Michael Karsy, Douglas Brockmeyer; writing: Sarah Nguyen; editing/revising: all authors.

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Correspondence to Michael Karsy.

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Michael Karsy — Thieme Medical Publishing (royalties).

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Nguyen, S., Cox, P., Campbell, J.M. et al. Evaluating the utility and quality of large administrative databases in pediatric spinal neurosurgery research. Childs Nerv Syst 37, 2993–3001 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00381-021-05331-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00381-021-05331-4

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