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Epidemiology and Management of Pediatric Fractures in Malawi
Benjamin P Cassidy1, Teja Yeramosu, Foster J Mbomuwa
1From the Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA (Mr. Cassidy and Mr. Yeramosu); the Harvard Global Orthopaedics Collaborative, Boston, MA (Mr. Cassidy, Mr. Yeramosu, Dr. Wu, and Dr. Agarwal-Harding); the Department of Surgery, Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital, Blantyre, Malawi (Mr. Mbomuwa and Mr. Chidothi); the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA (Dr. Wu); the AO Alliance Foundation, Davos, Switzerland (Dr. Martin and Dr. Harrison); the Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Trust, Chester, United Kingdom (Dr. Harrison); the Malawi University of Science and Technology, Limbe, Malawi (Dr. Chokotho); and the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA (Dr. Agarwal-Harding).
Background:
Pediatric fractures are common in Malawi, and surgical care, when needed, remains inaccessible to many. Understanding which children in Malawi receive surgery or nonsurgical treatment would help set priorities for trauma system development.
Methods:
We used multivariate logistic regression to evaluate associations between surgical treatment and age, sex, school enrollment, injury mechanism, fracture type, open fracture, referral status, hospital of presentation, delayed presentation (≥2 days), healthcare provider, and inpatient vs outpatient treatment.
Results:
From 2016 to 2020, 10,400 pediatric fractures were recorded in the Malawi Fracture Registry. Fractures were most commonly of the wrist (26%), forearm (17%), and elbow (14%). Surgical fixation was performed on 4.0% of patients, and 24 (13.0%) open fractures were treated nonsurgically, without débridement or fixation. Fractures of the proximal and diaphyseal humerus (odds ratio [OR], 3.72; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.36 to 5.87), knee (OR, 3.16; 95% CI, 1.68 to 5.95), and ankle (OR, 2.63; 95% CI, 1.49 to 4.63) had highest odds of surgery. Odds of surgical treatment were lower for children referred from another facility (OR, 0.62; 95% CI, 0.49 to 0.77).
Conclusions:
Most Malawian children with fractures are treated nonsurgically, including many who may benefit from surgery. There is a need to increase surgical capacity, optimize referral patterns, and standardize fracture management in Malawi.
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