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.
Abstract

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