1. A 10-Year Retrospective Review of Playground-Associated Craniofacial Injuries in the Pediatric Patient Population.
- Author
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Kolbow, Madison, Quick, Joseph D., Powell, Lauren E., Wang, Qi, Nguyen, Minh-Doan T., and Barta, Ruth J.
- Subjects
MOUTH injuries ,WOUNDS & injuries ,PLAY ,FACIAL injuries ,PUBLIC health surveillance ,DATABASES ,MEDICAL information storage & retrieval systems ,PATIENTS ,RESEARCH funding ,SEX distribution ,EMERGENCY medical services ,RETROSPECTIVE studies ,DESCRIPTIVE statistics ,PEDIATRICS ,MEDICAL records ,ACQUISITION of data ,SCHOOL children ,SCALP ,COMPARATIVE studies ,HEAD injuries ,CHILDREN - Abstract
This retrospective study utilized the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) database to identify pediatric emergency department (ED) patients with playground-associated craniofacial injuries between January 2012 and December 2021. A total of 25 414 patients were identified. The majority of injuries occurred in preschool and elementary school–age children (90.3%) and patients were more commonly boys (59.3%). Injuries most often involved the head/scalp (52.4%), face (30.4%), and mouth (11.9%). Infant (32.7%) and teen (40.0%) injuries most commonly involved swings, whereas preschool (23.1%) and elementary school (28.1%) injuries were mostly associated with slides and climbers, respectively. Most patients were treated in the ED and discharged to home (96.5%), a small portion required hospitalization (1.6%), and one death was reported. Although the majority of the injuries were relatively minor and resulted in same-day discharges, these injuries can result in serious physical harm, emotional stress, and unexpected financial burdens. Proper education and supervision regarding safe play is important to prevent these injuries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2024
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