Multiple trauma in pediatric patients

Abstract

We analyzed the causes and diagnoses, the treatment, short and long-term outcome of a consecutive series of 70 pediatric polytrauma patients. From 1989 to 1996, 70 children (aged 10 months to 16 years, mean 7.4 years) presented with multiple trauma. A follow-up investigation was performed 4.2 years (mean) after the accident. Traffic accidents (68%) were the leading cause of injuries. Among all injuries (mean ISS 24.6 range 17-57), injuries of the head/neck area were most frequent (87%) followed by extremity fractures (76%) and 135 operations were performed on 55 children, mostly for fracture stabilisation. All multiple injured children survived. At discharge 25 children were still impaired (36% of 70). At follow-up 58 patients were revisited, 11 (19% of 58) presented with impairments, 8 of those (73% of 11) following severe head trauma. This study showed a 10% rate of late impairment due to the severity of the primary head trauma.

Long-Term Health-Related Quality of Life in Major Pediatric Trauma: A Pilot Study

“…About 70% of the major traumas with ISS ‡ 16 were caused by traffic accidents. Other causes of major trauma were sporting activities, falls from height, and accidents in or around the house [2,3,7]. The body part that was injured most frequently was the head, followed by the extremities, the thorax, and the abdomen [2,3,7].…”

“…Other causes of major trauma were sporting activities, falls from height, and accidents in or around the house [2,3,7]. The body part that was injured most frequently was the head, followed by the extremities, the thorax, and the abdomen [2,3,7]. Males were over-represented in major trauma child populations, with 56-82% of the children with major trauma being male [2,8,9].…”

“…Males were over-represented in major trauma child populations, with 56-82% of the children with major trauma being male [2,8,9]. The mean intensive care unit stay varied from 4 to 9 days and the mean hospital stay from 13 to 26 days [2,7].…”

“…Previous studies show that children are still making progress between 5 and 9 years after major trauma [3,7]. So, to assess a stable physical and mental condition, the followup period should be at least 5 years.…”

“…In developed countries, injuries are the leading cause of death in children aged 1-18 years [4,5]. Injuries can cause severe functional impairment and psychosocial problems in the short term, as well as in the long term [6][7][8][9][10][11]. Despite this prominent role of major trauma in the mortality and morbidity in children, relatively little research has been done in terms of the health-related quality of life (HRQL) of children after major trauma.…”