Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42306143›Full record

ArticleJournal of the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America2026

Caregiver Health Literacy and Healthcare Utilization Behaviors: A Prospective Study Comparing Caregivers of Orthopaedic Patients With Chronic Versus Acute Conditions.

Nora A Galoustian, Michaela Juels, Alex Rueda, Aura Elias, Gabrielle Noullet, Anahit Malumyan, Lisa Su, Mauricio Silva, Rachel Mednick Thompson

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Article in Journal of the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Nora A GaloustianUniversity of California Los Angeles David Geffen School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Michaela JuelsUniversity of California Los Angeles David Geffen School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Alex RuedaUniversity of Southern California, Department of Epidemiology, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Aura EliasUniversity of California Los Angeles David Geffen School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Gabrielle NoulletUniversity of California, Department of Psychology, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Anahit MalumyanUniveristy of California Los Angeles, Department of Public Health, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Lisa SuUniversity of California Los Angeles Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Mauricio SilvaUniversity of California Los Angeles Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Rachel Mednick ThompsonUniversity of California San Diego Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, San Diego, California, USA.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Health literacy (HL) is the degree to which individuals comprehend information and services to inform health-related decisions and is a strong predictor of health outcomes. This study investigates whether increased exposure to the healthcare system equips caregivers of children with a chronic disease - cerebral palsy (CP) - with higher baseline HL compared to caregivers of otherwise healthy pediatric patients seeking acute surgical treatment. Methods: This prospective study utilized a single pediatric referral healthcare system over a 15-month period to recruit caregivers of pediatric patients with CP undergoing planned orthopaedic surgery (CP group) and caregivers of otherwise healthy pediatric patients undergoing planned surgical treatment for acute fractures (fracture group). Baseline HL was assessed pre-operatively with the Newest Vital Sign survey; charts were reviewed for no-shows, cancellations, and advice-only calls. Mann-Whitney U tests and pair-wise post hoc tests were utilized to compare cohorts. Results: Ninety patients were included for analysis, of which 37 (41.1%) were in the CP group and 53 (58.9%) were in the fracture group. There was no difference in baseline caregiver HL between cohorts (CP: 3.76 ± 1.62; fracture: 3.55 ± 2.09, Conclusion: Despite more interaction with the healthcare system, caregivers of children with CP do not have measurably higher HL compared to caregivers of children seeking acute, episodic fracture care. While these two cohorts demonstrate comparable baseline HL levels, their needs and utilization of healthcare differ considerably. These findings emphasize the importance of tailoring education to individual caregivers, providing counseling and resources at each visit, and ensuring caregiver comprehension regardless of patient status, system familiarity, or healthcare utilization. Key Concepts: (1)Caregivers of children with CP do not demonstrate higher baseline HL compared to caregivers of children with acute fractures.(2)Despite similar HL scores, caregivers in the CP group made significantly more advice-only calls, suggesting greater post-operative care needs.(3)Tailored educational support is essential, as healthcare system exposure alone does not equate to improved caregiver health literacy. Level of Evidence: II; Lesser-quality prospective study.

Indexed as

Cerebral palsyHealth literacyPediatric orthopaedics

Identifiers

PMID42306143
PMCPMC13267616

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.