Injury prevention counseling opportunities in pediatric otolaryngology

Objective: To determine the prevalence of injury prevention counseling opportunities in children referred to a pediatric otolaryngologist. Design: A caregiver questionnaire was administered during office registration. Setting: Hospital-based pediatric otolaryngology practice in a metropolitan area. Patients: Random sample of 300 caregiver questionnaires stratified by the age of the child. Main Outcome Measures: Prevention counseling opportunities, defined as ignorance of hottest water temperature, child exposure to passive smoke, missing smoke detectors on one or more floors in the home, or failure to use a seat belt or bicycle helmet. Results: The hottest water temperature was unknown by 72% of the caregivers, smokers were present in 25% of the households, bicycle helmets were not used by 22% of the children, car seats or seat belts were not used by 11% of the children, and 10% of the homes did not have a working smoke alarm on each floor. Older children were significantly less likely to use a seat belt than were younger children. Although 98% of the caregivers had a regular pediatrician, 91% of the families still offered one or more counseling opportunities (95% confidence interval, 87% to 94%). Conclusions: Substantial opportunities exist for injury prevention counseling in pediatric otolaryngology. At least one opportunity for counseling is present for about 90% of the families, most often concerning the maximum safe hot water temperature.