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Scanning Skeletal Remains for Bone Mineral Density in Forensic Contexts
07:56

Scanning Skeletal Remains for Bone Mineral Density in Forensic Contexts

Published on: January 29, 2018

Infant, maternal and pregnancy associated risk factors for offspring fractures during infancy - A population-based

Chris Derauf1, Rasika Rao2, Katherine King3

  • 1Department of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, Mayo Clinic, 200 First Street SW, Rochester, MN, 55905, United States of America.

Child Abuse & Neglect
|August 18, 2026
PubMed

Insights

Infant fractures are uncommon and mostly accidental, with prematurity being a key risk factor. Novel metabolic bone disease (MBD) risk factors were not associated with infant fractures in this study.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatrics
  • Orthopedics
  • Public Health

Background:

  • Infant fractures stem from birth trauma, accidents, or bone fragility conditions.
  • Previous research suggested maternal factors like BMI, smoking, and prematurity might increase infant fracture risk.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To determine the incidence and causes of non-birth-related infant fractures.
  • To identify infant and maternal factors associated with these fractures.

Main Methods:

  • A retrospective, population-based case-control study of infants born between 2009-2018.
  • 89 infants with fractures were matched with 162 controls; chart reviews analyzed demographics, clinical data, and potential metabolic bone disease (MBD) risk factors.

Main Results:

  • The incidence of infant fractures was 3.9 per 1000 births.
  • Accidents, primarily falls, caused 78% of fractures, often occurring after 6 months of age.
  • Prematurity (<37 weeks) was the only significant risk factor (OR 2.7), while hypothesized MBD risk factors showed no association.

Conclusions:

  • Non-birth-related infant fractures are rare, predominantly accidental, and linked to prematurity.
  • No association was found between infant fractures and hypothesized metabolic bone disease (MBD) risk factors.
  • Clinical evaluation is crucial for accurate fracture etiology determination, as administrative coding is insufficient.
Abstract

Keywords:
Bone diseases - metabolicChild abuseFracturesInfantPregnancyRisk factors

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