Findings strongest for children aged 3 months to <2 years<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
By Lori Solomon HealthDay Reporter<\/b>
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WEDNESDAY, Jan. 7, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Very young children seen virtually for primary care sick visits are more likely to visit the emergency department within three days, according to a study published online Dec. 18 in JAMA Network Open<\/em>.<\/p>\n Gabrielle Freire, from the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, and colleagues examined whether the modality of primary care sick visits (virtual versus in-person) for children is associated with subsequent emergency department use within three days. The analysis included administrative data from 2.6 million children with a primary care sick visit between September 2020 and March 2024.<\/p>\n The researchers found that children aged 3 months to <2 years had an increased adjusted risk for a subsequent emergency department visit when seen virtually versus in person (4.4 versus 3.5 percent; adjusted risk ratio [ARR], 1.49). A similar trend was seen for children aged 2 to 17 years (2.2 versus 2.4 percent; ARR, 1.19). For both children aged 3 months to <2 years and aged 2 to 17 years, those seen virtually had a lower risk for emergency department visits leading to hospitalization or death and a higher risk for low-acuity emergency department visits. The risk for a high-acuity emergency department visit was similar regardless of sick visit modality. Children younger than 3 months seen virtually had a similar risk for subsequent emergency visits as those seen in person.<\/p>\n “Virtual care definitely has a place in increasing access to primary care providers, with the caveat that in-person exams seem to be more important in young children than in adults in terms of resolution of acute concerns,” Freire said in a statement.<\/p>\n