Epidemiology and etiology of hospitalized pediatric trauma: An experience from the referral trauma hospital of Iran

Abstract

Background: Trauma accounts for long-term morbidity in children and its patterns depend on the cultural aspects of communities.Objectives: In the current study, we aimed to evaluate the epidemiology and etiology of trauma in pediatric patients.Methods: In this cross-sectional study, medical records of 299 children below 15 years old who had referred to Hashemi Nejad Trauma Center, Mashhad, Iran, from 2017 to 2018, were evaluated. All relevant medical data were collected. Patients were categorized into three age groups: 0-2, 3-6 and 7-15 years old. Variables were compared between different age groups and genders.Results: The main cause of trauma were road traffic accidents (51.8%) and falling from heights (31.4%). Common anatomical sites of trauma included the limbs, followed by head and neck (45.3% and 36.2%, respectively). Accident rates were highest between the hours of 13 to 19 (43.8%). There were no significant differences in comparing variables between genders (p>0.05). In pediatrics aged 0-2 years old, head and neck injuries were the most common sites of trauma (67.9%) (p=0.001). Road traffic accident rates increased from the ages of 0-2 to the ages of 7-15 years old (p=0.060).Conclusions: Prevention is one of the main interventions to decrease the morbidity and mortality related to pediatric trauma. Moreover, by evaluating the etiology of trauma and assessing the medical providing facilities could find the Achilles Heel and try to improve them.

Keywords

• pediatric
• injury
• epidemiology
• childhood
• trauma