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Pediatric trauma due to motor vehicle accidents on high traffic roadway
Israel Figueiredo Júnior1, Mauricio Vidal de Carvalho, Glaucia Macedo de Lima
1Universidade Federal Fluminense - UFF, Niterói (RJ), Brazil. ifigueiredo@id.uff.br
Insights
Children under 12 years old face significantly higher odds of trauma on busy highways. Motor vehicle accidents are the primary cause, with injuries often affecting extremities and the head, face, and neck.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Trauma Research
- Road Safety Studies
- Emergency Medical Services
Background:
- High-traffic roadways present unique risks for vulnerable populations.
- Understanding pediatric trauma patterns is crucial for targeted interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To characterize pediatric trauma victims on a major highway.
- To assess the likelihood of trauma in children on high-traffic roadways.
Main Methods:
- Descriptive cohort study analyzing emergency medical service activations on the Rio-Niterói Bridge.
- Calculation of odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals for pediatric trauma risk.
Main Results:
- Trauma represented 41.31% of all emergency activations.
- Children under 12 accounted for 4.18% of trauma cases, primarily from motor vehicle accidents (71.15%).
- Common injuries included extremities, face, and head; 44.23% required hospital transport.
Conclusions:
- Children face elevated trauma risk on high-traffic highways.
- Lower extremities and the head, face, and neck complex are common injury sites in pediatric trauma on roadways.
Objective:
To outline a profile of pediatric trauma victims and verify the likelihood of trauma in children on a high traffic roadway.
Methods:
A descriptive cohort study of the records of emergency medical service activations on the Rio-Niterói Bridge, a high traffic roadway in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Descriptive statistics were expressed as absolute and relative frequencies. The estimated risk of trauma in children aged < 12 years was calculated by means of odds ratios, with a 95% confidence interval.
Results:
Trauma accounted for 514 of 1,244 activations (41.31%) of the Rio-Niterói Bridge emergency medical service between March 2002 and March 2003. Response to incidents involving children aged < 12 years accounted for 52 of these (4.18%). Half of victims were between the ages of 6 and 12 years (n = 26), and 55.76% were male (n = 29). Of the 52 victims, 37 (71.15%) were involved in motor vehicle accidents (OR: 3.70; 95% CI: 1.94-7.13; p < 0.0001). Of these, 28 were vehicle-vehicle collisions (75.67%). The most common sites of injury were the extremities (n = 12; 32.43%), face (n = 10; 27.02%), and head (n = 9; 24.32%). Pre-hospital procedures were performed on 23 of the 37 patients (62.16%), and 44.23% (n = 23/52) required hospital transportation. There were no deaths during the study period.
Conclusions:
In this study, children were at significantly higher odds of being treated for trauma while on a highway with heavy traffic flow. The most common sites of injury in this sample were the lower extremities and the head, face, and neck complex.
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