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.