An interventional study of Focused Assessment with Sonography for Trauma (FAST) Examination and No Intervention: Standard of Care - Without the FAST Examination in Blunt Trauma to Abdomen, Wounds and Injuries and Abdomen Injury, sponsored by University of California, Davis. Recruiting at 6 sites in United States. Open to participants aged Up to 17 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-08-27.
Sponsored by University of California, Davis · Not applicable, Interventional, and Diagnostic
Bleeding from intra-abdominal injuries is a leading cause of traumatic deaths in children. Abdominal CT is the reference standard test for diagnosing intra-abdominal injuries. Compelling reasons exist, however, to both aggressively evaluate injured children for intra-abdominal injuries with CT and to limit abdominal CT evaluation to solely those at non-negligible risk. The focused assessment sonography for trauma (FAST) examination can help focus patient evaluation in just this manner by potentially safely decreasing abdominal CT use in low risk children. This research study is a multicenter, randomized, controlled trial to determine whether use of the FAST examination, a bedside abdominal ultrasound, impacts care in 3,194 hemodynamically stable children with blunt abdominal trauma. The overall objectives of this proposal are 1) to determine the efficacy of using the FAST examination during the initial evaluation of children with blunt abdominal trauma, and 2) to identify factors associated with abdominal CT use in children considered very low risk for IAI after a negative FAST examination. The long-term objective of the research is to determine appropriate evaluation strategies to optimize the care of injured children, leading to improved quality of care and a reduction in morbidity and mortality.
Trauma is a leading cause of death in children in the US. Abdominal trauma accounts for 30% of all pediatric traumatic deaths, second only to traumatic brain injury. Although CT is the reference standard for diagnosing intra-abdominal injury, it is associated with ionizing radiation, inducing malignancies at an estimated rate of 1 per 500 abdominal CT scans in children \<5 years and 1 per 600 scans in adolescents. Thus, CT use should be limited to those at non-negligible risk of intra-abdominal injury.
The Focused Assessment with Sonography for Trauma (FAST) examination has also evolved as a diagnostic test for the evaluation for intra-abdominal injury; however, it is used primarily in adults. The FAST examination uses abdominal ultrasonography to detect the presence of intraperitoneal fluid in injured patients. If intraperitoneal fluid is identified following a traumatic injury, this fluid is presumed to be blood (hemoperitoneum). The FAST examination for detection of hemoperitoneum in trauma consists of several images. These include a right hepatorenal interface (Morison's pouch), perisplenic view, and longitudinal and transverse views of the pelvis.
Potential advantages of initial ED evaluation of the injured child using the FAST examination include: 1) bedside evaluation during initial patient ED evaluation and resuscitation; 2) rapid completion of the diagnostic test (within 3-5 minutes); 3) performance of the test and interpretation of results by ED physicians or trauma surgeons caring for the child; 4) no radiation exposure; and 5) reduced patient-care costs compared to routine use of abdominal CT. In adults, a positive FAST examination is the best predictor of intra-abdominal injury. In two adult randomized controlled trials, the use of FAST demonstrated improved patient care by decreasing abdominal CT use, complications and costs. Although the sensitivity of the FAST exam for intra-abdominal injury is lower than CT, as a screening test, it may decrease the need for abdominal CT in both low risk injured adults and children.
The long-term objective of this research study is to determine appropriate evaluation strategies to optimize the care of injured children, leading to improved quality of care and a reduction in morbidity and mortality. The specific aims of this proposal are to: 1) perform a randomized, controlled trial of the FAST examination in injured children and compare the frequency of abdominal CT scanning between children who are randomized to the FAST and non-FAST arms; 2) identify if an evaluation strategy including the FAST examination results in a similar frequency of missed or delayed diagnoses of intra-abdominal injuries than a strategy without the FAST examination; and 3) identify patient, physician, and system factors associated with obtaining abdominal CT scans in patients considered low risk for intra-abdominal injuries by the clinician after a negative FAST examination. Such a study has the potential for significant impact in improving the lives of injured children, if found to be successful.
This randomized controlled trial will follow the methods of the one prior randomized controlled trial of FAST in injured children which enrolled 925 injured children at a single center. This study incorporate a total of six centers to increase the sample size and generalizability of the results.
60 studies on the registry are indexed under Abdominal Injuries; 19 are open to participants now.
This study's planned enrollment of 4,650 is above the median of 125 across 30 interventional studies indexed under Abdominal Injuries.
Browse Abdominal Injuries studies →University of California, Davis is the lead sponsor of 809 studies on the registry; 142 are open to participants now.
Of its 67 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 43 (64%) have results posted.
Compared within Abdominal Injuries, this study's primary condition as ClinicalTrials.gg classifies it; the registry's first condition term is Wounds and Injuries. The counts are of registry records indexed under each term, refreshed daily. How we classify →
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Children younger than 18 years of age (0 to 17.9999 years) with blunt abdominal trauma presenting to the participating EDs within 24 hours of the traumatic event will be eligible if the do not meet any exclusion criteria and meet any one of the following inclusion criteria.
Inclusion Criteria:
Blunt torso trauma resulting from a significant mechanism of injury:
Blunt traumatic event with any of the following (regardless of the mechanism):
Exclusion Criteria:
The following patients will be excluded from the study:
Age-adjusted low blood pressure (Hemodynamic instability)
Patients in this arm will under the FAST examination (abdominal ultrasound) for diagnostic purposes to detect the presence of blood in injured patients with blunt abdominal trauma.
Diagnostic Test: Focused Assessment with Sonography for Trauma (FAST) Examination
Institution will use their standard operating procedures to deliver the usual care for injured patients with blunt abdominal/torso trauma.
Other: No Intervention: Standard of Care - Without the FAST Examination
A bedside Focused Assessment with Sonography for Trauma (FAST) Examination will be conducted on those participants who are randomized to the FAST arm.
Also known as: Abdominal Ultrasound
Participants randomized to usual care will be evaluated per the standard operating procedures of the institution/site for the condition under study without the FAST exam.
Rate of abdominal CT scanning
The primary outcome is the rate of abdominal CT scanning in each study arm, measured for each patient categorically (yes/no) during the Emergency Department stay and initial hospitalization (up to 24 hours).
Time frame: For the duration of the subject's Emergency Department stay and initial hospitalization (up to 24 hours)
Rate of delayed or missed or delayed intra-abdominal injuries
The rate of missed or delayed intra-abdominal injuries (IAI) will be identified and reported for any cases with a delay in diagnosis (i.e., patients diagnosed with IAI in the hospital after ED disposition) or missed IAI (IAI diagnosed after discharge from the ED/hospital).
Time frame: In hospitalized participants, IAI collection will be captured from the time of assignment until discharge (up to 30 days). For participants discharged from the ED IAI collection will be captured from the time of assignment until 7 days after ED discharge
Identifying variables associated with obtaining abdominal CT scans in very low risk patients with normal FAST examinations
This primary outcome will be a binary indicator (yes/no) for whether the patient with a normal FAST examination who is thought by the clinician to have less than a 1% risk of intra-abdominal injury nonetheless undergoes abdominal CT (outcome of interest).
Time frame: The binary indicator assessment of yes/no will occur upon discharge from the Emergency Department or admission to the hospital, an average of 6.5 hours
Emergency Department (ED) length of stay
ED length of stay is a continuous variable measured in minutes. The investigators will compare the ED length of stay between study arms using nonparametric methods (time from ED arrival to hospital admission or time from ED arrival until ED discharge).
Time frame: ED length of stay will be calculated in minutes from the time of ED arrival until the time of ED discharge or the time from ED arrival until the time of hospital admission assessed up to 7 days.
Rate of Hospitalization
Rate of hospitalization is a categorical variable (yes/no) on whether the patient is hospitalized on initial, enrolling ED visit. The investigators will compare the rate of hospitalization between study arms using categorical statistical methods.
Time frame: The assessment of the categorical variable yes/no will occur upon the participants discharge from the Emergency Department or admission to the hospital, an average of 6.5 hours
Physician suspicion of intra-abdominal injury
Physician suspicion of intra-abdominal injury is collected after initial physician evaluation for all patients. For those patients who are randomized to the FAST examination this information is collected again after completing the FAST examination. Physician suspicion is collected as follows: Less than 1%, 1-5%, 6-10%, 11-50%, greater than 50%.
Time frame: All physician suspicion assessments will occur up to 24 hours after a participants ED presentation
Rate of abdominal CT scanning in children 0 to 3 years of age.
In this prespecified age group, the outcome is the rate of abdominal CT scanning in each study arm, measured for each patient categorically (yes/no) during the Emergency Department stay and initial hospitalization (up to 24 hours).
Time frame: For the duration of the subject's Emergency Department stay and initial hospitalization (up to 24 hours).
Laparotomy (surgery to the abdomen) rate
Laparotomy rate is a binary indicator (yes/no) for whether the patient underwent a laparotomy (surgery to the abdomen) to identify/repair an intra-abdominal injury.
Time frame: For the first seven days after the time of injury.
Plan to share: No
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