[Dog bites in children. Epidemiologic and clinical study of 144 cases]

We have done a prospective study of 144 cases of dog bites in children between 1 and 13 years of age that were attended at the Emergency Department of the "Miguel Servet" Children's Hospital of Zaragoza over a period of 30 months. The average child is an 8 year old boy who is bitten at 4 p.m. in the lower limbs by a dog belonging to either the family, a neighbor, or to some friends. The dog of unknown breed and the German shepherd are those most frequently involved (39.5% and 22.2%, respectively). There is a low incidence of infection (4.8%). The attacks were provoked by petting in 52.7%; therefore, we recommend not to get close to the animals even if they are known. In our area, 83.3% of the children are correctly vaccinated. Finally, we compare our results with other studies and we suggest that it is of great interest to establish measures in order to reduce the incidence of dog bites.