Blunt Abdominal Trauma in Children: A Review of 105 Cases

Abstract

Aims: The aim of the study is to identify the epidemiological, diagnostic, therapeutic, and evolutionary characteristics of patients admitted for blunt abdominal trauma (BAT) in a level 3 children's hospital. Subjects and Methods: It was a retrospective and descriptive study on a series of 105 cases of BAT recorded over 8 years. The data were collected from patients' files. The analysis was done on Excel 2016. Several parameters were studied: frequency, age, sex, cause of trauma, circumstances, mechanism, mode of transportation, admission time, medical history, symptoms and signs, laboratory findings, radiological findings, injury assessment, associated injuries, type of treatment, and evolutionary modalities. Results: The frequency was 13.1 cases/year. The mean age was 6.6 years. The sex ratio was 3.56. Road traffic accidents were the most frequent cause (54.3%). Abdominal tenderness (88.6%) was the most common physical sign. Associated lesions were found in 40% of cases. Abdominal sonography (85.7%) was the most common imaging tool followed by an abdominal computed tomography scan (34.4%). The liver was the most affected organ (24.7%) and contusion was the most frequent lesion (65.4%). The majority of patients had received nonoperative treatment (93.3%). The average length of hospitalization was 5.6 days. The outcome in all cases was favorable. No mortality was reported. Conclusions: BAT in children is common in boys under the age of 10. They are caused by road accidents. Physical examination combined with abdominal ultrasound is very important in the therapeutic decision, which in most cases is a conservative one. Morbidity and mortality are almost nil.