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Characteristics of injury mechanisms in children and differences between urban and rural areas in central China

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European Journal of Trauma and Emergency Surgery Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Background

Some studies lack detailed analyses of the differences and characteristics of pediatric injury mechanisms between urban and rural areas.

Objective

We aim to understand the characteristics, trends, and mortality rates of injury mechanisms in children in urban and rural areas in central China.

Results

In a study involving 15,807 pediatric trauma patients, it was observed that boys constituted the majority (65.4%) and those aged ≤ 3 years were the most prevalent (28.62%). Falls (39.8%), burns (23.2%), and traffic accidents (21.1%) were identified as the top three injury mechanisms. The head (29.0%) and limbs (35.7%) were found to be the most susceptible to injury. Additionally, children between the ages of 1–3 years exhibited a higher likelihood of sustaining burn injuries compared to other age groups. The main causes of burn injury were hydrothermal burns (90.3%), flame burns (4.9%), chemical burns (3.5%), and electronic burns (1.3%). In urban areas, the major injury mechanisms were falls (40.9%), traffic accidents (22.4%), burns (20.9%), and poison (7.1%), whereas, in rural areas, they were falls (39.5%), burns (23.8%), traffic accidents (20.8%), and penetration (7.0%). Over the past decade, the overall incidences of pediatric trauma have been decreasing. In the past year, the number of injured children was the highest in July, and the overall mortality rate due to trauma was 0.8%.

Conclusion

Our findings revealed that in different age groups, the injury mechanisms are different in urban and rural areas. Burns are the second leading cause of trauma in children. A decrease in pediatric trauma over the past 10 years indicates targeted measures and preventive intervention may effectively prevent pediatric trauma.

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Data availability

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank all relative hospitals for their support and help in providing the data required for the study. The authors would also like to thank our colleagues for their guidance in data analysis.

Funding

This manuscript is independent research supported by the Science and Technology Planning Project in Wuhu (2021jc2–4).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medical Record Management, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wannan Medical College, Wuhu, 241000, China

    Yuanying Yao & Lijuan Ma

  2. Department of Burn and Plastic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wannan Medical College, Wuhu, 241000, China

    Lei Chen

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  1. Yuanying Yao
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  2. Lijuan Ma
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Correspondence to Lei Chen.

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Yuanying Yao, Lijuan Ma, and Lei Chen declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Yao, Y., Ma, L. & Chen, L. Characteristics of injury mechanisms in children and differences between urban and rural areas in central China. Eur J Trauma Emerg Surg 49, 2459–2466 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00068-023-02320-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00068-023-02320-x

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