The bottom line
BRUE has been proposed to replace the term ALTE for an unexplained witnessed event as defined above. BRUEs differ from ALTEs in that the criteria are more strictly defined, and they allow providers to stratify children as lower risk or higher risk for a recurrent episode or SIDS. By identifying a child’s risk, providers are able to appropriately utilize resources to refrain from doing an extensive medical work-up in a child who is otherwise healthy and low risk for a serious event.
Reference
Dr. Skolnik is associate director of the family medicine residency program at Abington (Pa.) Memorial Hospital and professor of family and community medicine at Temple University, Philadelphia. Dr. Cavanaugh is a second-year resident in the Abington-Jefferson Family Medicine Residency Program.