Presentations of @entity1 to @entity341 in Alberta, Canada, for XXXX : a large population-based study.

@entity1 @entity5924 @entity341 @entity2613
OBJECTIVES: @entity5924 is the most common lower respiratory tract disease among @entity1 and results in 35 admissions per 1000 @entity1 in Canada. We describe the epidemiology of @entity5924 presentations to @entity341 ( @entity341 ) made by @entity1 (aged  <=2 years) in Alberta, Canada. METHODS: Provincial administrative databases were used to obtain all @entity2613 encounters for @entity5924 during April 1999 to March 2005. Information included demographics, @entity2613 visit timing, and subsequent visits to non- @entity2613 settings. Data analysis included summaries and standardized rates. RESULTS: There were 26,742 @entity2613 visits for @entity5924 made by 18,155 @entity1 . Most (74.9%) had only 1 @entity5924 -related @entity2613 visit; males (60.6% of @entity2613 visits, 59.8% of @entity1 ) more commonly presented than females. The standardized rates increased from 23.2 to 46.7 per 1000 in 1999/2000 to 2000/2001 and decreased gradually to 38.8 per 1000 in 2004/2005. Of the total visits, 22.6% required hospitalization. In a discharged subset, 10.4% had a repeat @entity2613 visit within 7 days. Most @entity1 (63.3%) had yet to have a non- @entity2613 follow-up visit by 1 week; median time to the first follow-up was 18 days. CONCLUSIONS: @entity5924 is a common presenting problem in Alberta @entity341 , and further study of these trends is required to understand variation in presentations. The important findings include different trends in rates for the first 3 years before a gradual decrease, disparities based on age, sex, and socioeconomic/cultural status, and the low rate of early follow-up. Targeted interventions could be implemented to reduce @entity5924 -related hospitalizations.
