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Neuroimaging, physical, and developmental findings after inflicted and noninflicted traumatic brain injury in young
L Ewing-Cobbs1, L Kramer, M Prasad
1Department of Pediatrics, University of Texas at Houston Health Science Center, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
Insights
Inflicted traumatic brain injury (TBI) in children often shows signs of prior injury on scans and includes retinal hemorrhages. These children experience worse outcomes and cognitive deficits compared to non-inflicted TBI.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Traumatology
- Neuroimaging in Child Abuse
- Developmental Pediatrics
Background:
- Traumatic brain injury (TBI) in children can result from inflicted or non-inflicted causes, necessitating accurate diagnosis.
- Distinguishing between inflicted and non-inflicted TBI is crucial for appropriate medical and legal interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To characterize neuroimaging, physical, neurobehavioral, and developmental findings in children with inflicted and non-inflicted TBI.
- To identify specific features indicative of inflicted TBI in young children.
Main Methods:
- A prospective longitudinal study of 40 children (0-6 years) hospitalized for TBI.
- TBI categorized as inflicted (n=20) or non-inflicted (n=20) by protective services.
- Neuroimaging, physical exams, and neurodevelopmental assessments were performed.
Main Results:
- Inflicted TBI cases showed signs of preexisting brain injury (45%), subdural hematomas, seizures, and retinal hemorrhages.
- Non-inflicted TBI cases did not exhibit signs of prior injury.
- Outcomes were significantly worse for inflicted TBI, with mental deficiency in 45% versus 5%.
Conclusions:
- Characteristic findings of inflicted TBI include prior injury signs on imaging, extraaxial hemorrhages, seizures, and retinal hemorrhages.
- Cognitive function is significantly impaired in inflicted TBI, often without prolonged consciousness impairment.
- These features aid in differentiating inflicted from non-inflicted TBI in children.
Objective:
To characterize neuroimaging, physical, neurobehavioral, and developmental findings in children with inflicted and noninflicted traumatic brain injury (TBI) and to identify characteristic features of inflicted TBI.
Methods And Patients:
Forty children, 0 to 6 years of age, hospitalized for TBI who had no documented history of previous brain injury were enrolled in a prospective longitudinal study. TBI was categorized as either inflicted (n = 20) or noninflicted (n = 20) based on the assessment of hospital and county protective services. Glasgow Coma Scale scores and neonatal history were comparable in both groups.
Outcome Measures:
Acute computed tomography/magnetic resonance imaging studies and physical findings were evaluated. Glasgow Outcome Scale scores, cognitive development, and motor functioning were assessed an average of 1.3 months after TBI. chi2 analyses assessed differences in the distribution of findings in the inflicted and noninflicted TBI groups.
Results:
Signs of preexisting brain injury, including cerebral atrophy, subdural hygroma, and ex vacuo ventriculomegaly, were present in 45% of children with inflicted TBI and in none of the children with noninflicted TBI. Subdural hematomas and seizures occurred significantly more often in children with inflicted TBI. Intraparenchymal hemorrhage, edema, skull fractures, and cephalohematomas were similar in both groups. Retinal hemorrhage was only identified in the inflicted TBI group. Glasgow Outcome Scale scores indicated a significantly less favorable outcome after inflicted than noninflicted TBI. Mental deficiency was present in 45% of the inflicted and 5% of the noninflicted TBI groups.
Conclusions:
Characteristic features of inflicted TBI included acute computed tomography/magnetic resonance imaging findings of preexisting brain injury, extraaxial hemorrhages, seizures, retinal hemorrhages, and significantly impaired cognitive function without prolonged impairment of consciousness.