Related Experiment Videos
Long-term disability after trauma in children
S Valadka1, D Poenaru, A Dueck
1Department of Surgery, School of Medicine, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada.
Insights
Over half of pediatric trauma patients experience long-term disability. Key predictors for this lasting impairment include the number of body regions injured, injury severity score, and the mechanism of trauma.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Traumatology
- Rehabilitation Medicine
- Public Health
Background:
- Pediatric trauma can lead to significant long-term health consequences.
- Understanding factors influencing long-term disability is crucial for effective intervention.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the prevalence of long-term disability in children following traumatic injuries.
- To identify specific factors that predict the development of such disabilities.
Main Methods:
- A phone survey was administered to pediatric trauma patients (Injury Severity Score >= 4) over six years.
- The survey utilized modified Rand Health Insurance Study scales to assess functional limitations.
Main Results:
- 54% of interviewed patients reported no long-term limitations.
- 28% experienced limitations in physical or role activities, 16% in mobility, and 2% in self-care.
- Number of body regions injured, mechanism of injury, and Injury Severity Score (ISS) were significant predictors of disability.
Conclusions:
- Long-term sequelae are common in pediatric trauma survivors.
- Predicting long-term disability is feasible using trauma severity scores and injury characteristics.
Purpose:
The aim of this study was to assess long-term disability after pediatric trauma and identify predicting factors.
Methods:
A phone survey was conducted of all pediatric trauma patients with an Injury Severity Score (ISS) > or = 4 seen over 6 years at a regional trauma center. The questionnaire was a modification of the Rand Health Insurance Study scales.
Results:
Of 218 eligible trauma registry patients, 19 were deceased, 64 unreachable, 19 declined, and 116 interviewed. There were no demographic differences between respondents and nonrespondents. Sixty-three percent of the respondents were boys, mean age at injury was 13, ISS 16.7, and mean interval since injury was 4.4 (range, 1 to 7) years. Sixty-three children (54%) had no limitations on follow-up; the remainder had either limitations in physical or role activities (28%), mobility (16%), or self-care ability (2%). Significant correlations were found between the presence of disability and trauma scores and number of body regions injured. Stepwise logistic regression identified number of regions injured, mechanism of injury, and ISS as the main determinants for presence of long-term disability.
Conclusions:
Half of injured children do have long-term sequelae. Their occurrence can be predicted from trauma scores, mechanism of injury, and number of regions injured.