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Updated: Jul 11, 2026
Creating Rigidly Stabilized Fractures for Assessing Intramembranous Ossification, Distraction Osteogenesis, or Healing of Critical Sized Defects
Published on: April 11, 2012
Childhood fractures requiring inpatient management
D E Deakin1, J M Crosby, C G Moran
1Department of Trauma & Orthopaedics, University Hospital, Derby Road, Nottingham NG7 2UH, United Kingdom.
Insights
Males are twice as likely as females to be admitted for childhood fractures, with male adolescents being particularly vulnerable. Distal radial fractures from falls and distal tibial fractures from sports are most common.
Area of Science:
- Orthopaedic Surgery
- Pediatric Trauma
- Public Health
Background:
- Childhood fractures lead to significant morbidity, with inpatient cases representing severe injuries.
- Understanding injury patterns in hospitalized pediatric fractures is crucial for targeted prevention.
- Regional trauma centers manage a substantial volume of serious pediatric fracture cases.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify and analyze injury patterns in childhood fractures requiring inpatient management.
- To establish trends in pediatric fracture admissions at a regional trauma center.
- To inform strategies for reducing morbidity associated with severe childhood fractures.
Main Methods:
- Prospective data collection over a 4-year period from 3,042 injured children admitted to an orthopaedic center.
- Independent audit clerks recorded injury type, mechanism, and location.
- Data analysis focused on identifying patterns and trends in fracture admissions.
Main Results:
- Upper limb fractures (51%) and lower limb fractures (21%) dominated emergency admissions.
- Males constituted 67% of admissions, with higher likelihood of older age.
- Distal radial fractures (falls) and distal tibial fractures (sports) were most frequent.
Conclusions:
- Males, especially adolescents, face double the risk of inpatient fracture management compared to females.
- Falls are the primary cause of upper limb fractures, while sports injuries dominate lower limb fractures.
- Preventive measures targeting high-risk fractures and demographics could significantly reduce childhood morbidity.
Introduction:
Fractures account for significant morbidity during childhood. Children requiring inpatient management for their fractures represent the most serious injuries. The aim of this study was to identify injury patterns in childhood fractures requiring inpatient management at a regional trauma centre.
Methods:
Three thousand and forty two consecutive injured children were admitted to our orthopaedic centre over a 4-year period. Data was prospectively collected by independent audit clerks and entered onto a database. Data recorded included type of injury, mechanism of injury and place of injury. This was then used to assess injury patterns and trends.
Results:
Upper limb and lower limb fractures accounted for 51% (n=1,565) and 21% (n=637) of all emergency admissions, respectively. Other causes included soft tissue injury, Infections, Polytrauma and Dislocations. Twice as many males were admitted with upper or lower limb fractures compared to females (67% versus 33%) (P<0.001). Males were more likely to be older (P<0.001) compared to females. Distal radial fractures accounted for 60% of upper limb fractures. Distal and midshaft tibial fractures accounted for 52% of lower limb fractures. Sports injuries were responsible for the majority of lower limb fractures with falls accounting for the majority of upper limb fractures. Fracture incidence peaked during summer months.
Conclusion:
Males are twice as likely to require inpatient management for fractures as females. Male adolescents are particularly at risk. Distal radial fractures following falls and distal tibial fractures following sports injuries are the most common fractures requiring admission. Identifying ways of minimising risk of these injuries would reduce childhood morbidity.
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