Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The Epidemiology of the Pediatric War Injuries

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
The War Injured Child

  • 214 Accesses

Abstract

Pediatric war injuries represent a major global public health problem and are disproportionately shouldered by Low and Middle-Income Countries. They result in long-term physical and psychological harm to children and place a substantial burden on family members, institutions, and society in general provoking poverty and social disability. Pediatric war injuries differ from adult injuries with regard to epidemiology, patterns of injury, etiology, and anatomic distribution, and need special treatment considerations. This chapter on the epidemiology of pediatric war injuries presents a particular perspective on the variables affecting the outcomes of war injured children’s treatments.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
$34.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or eBook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 99.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 129.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Save the Children. The war on children. Save the children; 2018 5–40.

    Google Scholar 

  2. Wessells M. Children and armed conflict: interventions for supporting war-affected children. Peace Confl: J Peace Psychol. 2017;23(1):4–13.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Graham G, Kirollos M, Fylkesnes G, Salarkia K, Wong N. Stop the war on children. Genevae. 2017:4–60.

    Google Scholar 

  4. Kadir A, Shenoda S, Goldhagen J. Effects of armed conflict on child health and development: a systematic review. PLoS One. 2019;14(1):e0210071.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  5. (PRIO) P. Trends in Armed Conflict, 1946–2016 [Internet]. Prio.org. 2020 [cited 12 May 2020]. Available from: https://www.prio.org/Publications/Publication/?x=10599

  6. Giannou C, Baldan M. War surgery. Geneva: ICRC; 2010. p. 50–120.

    Google Scholar 

  7. Zwi A, Ugalde A. Towards an epidemiology of political violence in the third world. Soc Sci Med. 1989;28(7):633–42.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Çelik N, Özpınar S. Children and health effects of war being a war child. Cumhuriyet Med J. 2017:639–43.

    Google Scholar 

  9. Kadir A, Shenoda S, Goldhagen J, Pitterman S. The effects of armed conflicts on children. Pediatrics. 2018;142(6).

    Google Scholar 

  10. Mosleh M, Dalal K, Aljeesh Y, Svanström L. The burden of war-injury in the Palestinian health care sector in Gaza Strip. BMC Int Health Hum Rights. 2018;18:1.

    Google Scholar 

  11. Hyder A, Wali S, Fishman S, Schenk E. The burden of unintentional injuries among the under-five population in South Asia. Acta Paediatr. 2008;97(3):267–75.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. World Health Organization (WHO). The global burden of disease. Geneva: WHO; 2004. update. p. 2008.

    Google Scholar 

  13. The Six Grave Violations - United Nations Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict | To promote and protect the rights of all children affected by armed conflict [Internet]. United Nations Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict [cited 12 May 2020]. https://childrenandarmedconflict.un.org/six-grave-violations/

  14. Hall DM. The future of child protection. J R Soc Med. 2006;99(1):6–9.

    Google Scholar 

  15. Miller D, Mansour K. Blunt Traumatic Lung Injuries. Thorac Surg Clin. 2007;17(1):57–61.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Newton G, and Zimring F. Firearms and violence in American Life, pp. 1–71. National Commission on the Causes and Prevention of Violence. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D. C., 1968.

    Google Scholar 

  17. Lilyea J. Hand-wringing about gun violence [Internet]. This ain't Hell, but you can see it from here. 2020 [cited 12 May 2020]. https://valorguardians.com/blog/?p=72848

  18. Prahlow J. Fatal gunshot wounds in young children. Acad Forensic Pathol. 2016;6(4):691–702.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  19. Fowler K. Childhood firearm injuries in the United States [internet]. Res Gate. 2017; [cited 12 May 2020]. https://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/pediatrics/early/2017/06/15/peds.2016-3486.full.pdf

  20. [Internet]. Imperial.ac.uk. 2020 [cited 12 May 2020]. https://www.imperial.ac.uk/media/imperial-college/research-centres-and-groups/centre-for-blast-injury-studies/Literature-Review-on-paediatric-blast-injury.pdf

  21. Wesson HK, Boikhutso N, Bachani AM, Hofman KJ, Hyder AA. The cost of injury and trauma care in low- and middle-income countries: a review of economic evidence. Health Policy Plan. 2014;29:795–808.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  22. Quintana D, Jordan F, Tuggle D, Mantor P, Tunell W. The spectrum of pediatric injuries after a bomb blast. J Pediatr Surg. 1997;32(2):307–11.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  23. Denselow J, Salarkia K, Edwards J. [Internet]. Savethechildren.org.uk. 2018 [cited 12 May 2020]. https://www.savethechildren.org.uk/content/dam/gb/reports/blast_injuries.pdf

  24. Bilukha O, Brennan M. Injuries and deaths caused by unexploded ordnance in Afghanistan: review of surveillance data, 1997-2002. BMJ. 2005;330(7483):127–8.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  25. Bilukha O, Brennan M, Anderson M. The lasting legacy of war: epidemiology of injuries from landmines and unexploded ordnance in Afghanistan, 2002–2006. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2008;23(6):493–9.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  26. Hamele M. Disaster preparedness, pediatric considerations in primary blast injury, chemical, and biological terrorism. World J Crit Care Med. 2014;3(1):15.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  27. Action on Armed Violence | AOAV [Internet]. AOAV. 2020 [cited 12 May 2020]. https://aoav.org.uk/

  28. Bendinelli C, 2009. ‘Effects of land mines and unexploded ordnance on the pediatric population and comparison with adults in rural Cambodia’. World J Surg. In Hargrave, M., 2019. The Impact of Blast Injury on Children: A multidisciplinary literature review. Centre for Blast Injuries Study, Imperial College London.

    Google Scholar 

  29. Stevenson M. An overview of the injury severity score and the new injury severity score. Inj Prev. 2001;7(1):10–3.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  30. Edwards MJ, Lustik M, Eichelberger MR, Elster E, Azarow K, Coppola C. Blast injury in children: an analysis from Afghanistan and Iraq, 2002-2010. J Trauma Acute Care Surg. 2012;73(5):1278–83.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  31. Wolf SJ, Bebarta VS, Bonnett CJ, Pons PT, Cantrill SV. Blast injuries. Lancet. 2009;374(9687):405–15.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  32. Allison K, Porter K. Consensus on the pre-hospital approach to burns patient management. Injury. 2004:734–8.

    Google Scholar 

  33. Wang XQ, Mill J, Kravchuk O, Kimble RM. Ultrasound assessed thickness of burn scars in association with laser Doppler imaging determined depth of burns in paediatric patients. Burns. 2010;36(8):1254–62.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  34. Jeschke MG, Gauglitz GG, Kulp GA, Finnerty CC, Williams FN, Kraft R, et al. Long-term persistance of the pathophysiologic response to severe burn injury. PLoS One. 2011;6:7.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. Jaffe DH, Peleg K. Terror explosive injuries. Ann Surg. 2010;251(1):138–43.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  36. Edwards MJ, Lustik M, Carlson T, Tabak B, Farmer D, Edwards K, et al. Surgical interventions for pediatric blast injury: an analysis from Afghanistan and Iraq 2002 to 2010. J Trauma Acute Care Surg. 2014;76(3):854–8.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  37. Chafi MS, Karami G, Ziejewski M. Biomechanical assessment of brain dynamic responses due to blast pressure waves. Ann Biomed Eng. 2010;38(2):490–504.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  38. Creamer KM, Edwards MJ, Shields CH, Thompson MW, Yu CE, Adelman W. Pediatric wartime admissions to US Military Combat Support Hospitals in Afghanistan and Iraq: learning from the first 2,000 admissions. Trauma. 2009;67(4):762–9.

    Google Scholar 

  39. Waisman Y, Aharonson-Daniel L, Mor M, Amir L, Peleg K. The impact of terrorism on children: a two-year experience. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2003;18(3):242–8.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  40. Hasler RM, Exadaktylos AK, Bouamra O, Benneker LM, Clancy M, Sieber R, et al. Epidemiology and predictors of spinal injury in adult major trauma patients: European cohort study. Eur Spine J. 2011;20(12):2174–80.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  41. Stephan K, Huber S, Häberle S, Kanz K-G, Bühren V, van Griensven M, et al. Spinal cord injury—incidence, prognosis, and outcome: an analysis of the Trauma Register DGU. Spine J. 2015;15(9):1994–2001.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  42. Anwar M, Akhtar J, Khatoon R, Ali R. Blast injuries in children and adolescents. J Surg Pak. 2015;20:1.

    Google Scholar 

  43. Ratto J, Johnson BK, Condra CS, Knapp JF. Pediatric blast lung injury from a fireworks-related explosion. Pediatr Emerg Care. 2012;28(6):573–6.

    Google Scholar 

  44. Crabtree J. Terrorist homicide bombings: a primer for preparation. J Burn Care Res. 2006;27(5):576–88.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  45. Villamaria CY, Morrison JJ, Fitzpatrick CM, Cannon JW, Rasmussen TE. Wartime vascular injuries in the pediatric population of Iraq and Afghanistan: 2002-2011. J Pediatr Surg. 2014;49(3):428–32.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  46. Bendinelli C. Effects of land mines and unexploded ordnance on the pediatric population and comparison with adults in rural Cambodia. World J Surg. 2009;33(5):1070–4.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  47. Quintana DA, Jordan FB, Tuggle DW, Mantor PC, Tunell WP. The spectrum of pediatric injuries after a bomb blast. J Pediatr Surg. 1997;32(2):307–11.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  48. Fausti SA, Wilmington DJ, Gallun FJ, Myers PJ, Henry JA. Auditory and vestibular dysfunction associated with blast-related traumatic brain injury. J Rehabil Res Dev. 2009;46(6):797–810.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, American University of Beirut Medical Center, Beirut, Lebanon

    Ismail Soboh

  2. Conflict Medicine Program, Global Health Institute, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon

    Ghassan Soleiman Abu-Sittah

Authors
  1. Ismail Soboh
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Ghassan Soleiman Abu-Sittah
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ghassan Soleiman Abu-Sittah .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon

    Ghassan Soleiman Abu-Sittah

  2. Department of Surgery, American University of Beirut Medical Center, Beirut, Lebanon

    Jamal J. Hoballah

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2023 Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Soboh, I., Abu-Sittah, G.S. (2023). The Epidemiology of the Pediatric War Injuries. In: Abu-Sittah, G.S., Hoballah, J.J. (eds) The War Injured Child. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-28613-1_1

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-28613-1_1

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-031-28612-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-28613-1

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation