Objective: The study aimed to determine the necessity of performing CT scans in infants with head trauma as a result of falls because of the concerns regarding radiation exposure by evaluating the hospitalization rates.
Methods: The present study included 1060 patients who underwent cranial CT in the emergency department owing to a pediatric fall between 2018 and 2022. One patient who refused treatment and one traffic accident case were excluded from the study. Skull fractures and their characteristics and associated skin findings and intracranial hemorrhage on CT scans and patients demographic features (age & sex) and medical history, hospitalization rates were investigated.
Results: Of the 1058 patients with brain trauma who presented to the emergency department in the secondary care center, fractures was detected in only 28 patients. Of these patients, 1.8% were treated as inpatients. Subdural hematomas and epidural hematomas were detected in 10.7% (n = 3) and 7.1% (n = 2) of patients with fractures, respectively. Furthermore, subdural hematomas and epidural hematomas were detected in 0.3% and 0.2% of trauma admissions, respectively.
Conclusion: In conclusion, positive CT findings and a low percentage of patients requiring hospitalization stand out in the patients examined. Therefore, care should be taken when requesting tomography between the ages of 0-2.
Keywords: skull fracture, infant, head trauma, hospitalization rates, fall