Non-fatal unintentional injuries in children aged <15 years, Nicaragua, 2004

Background Hundreds of thousands of children suffer injuries that do not result in death, often leaving them with short or long-term disabilities. More than 90% of unintentional injuries occur in low-and middle-income countries. To date no study has documented the burden of unintentional non-fatal injuries among children in Nicaragua. The aim of this abstract is to describe non-fatal unintentional injuries among children aged 0-14 years treated in emergency departments (ED) in Nicaragua. The ultimate goal is to assist in the development of prevention strategies and create a world fit to children.

Methods The 2004 Injury Surveillance System (ISS) from four hospitals included all cases of injuries attended in the EDs (n=37,577). We selected the records of 13,426 children aged <15 years who sustained non-fatal unintentional injuries.

Results The leading causes of injuries were falls (50.5%), blunt force trauma (13.2%), and transport-related injury (11.5%). Transport-related injuries primarily involved cyclists (42.3%) and passengers (32.5%). The main product involved in burn-related injuries was hot liquid (56%); and the main product involved in poisoning was hydrocarbon (43.6%). Body region more affected were head (37.7%) and upper limb (33.1%). The leading diagnosis was fracture (23.9%). Two-third of the severe injuries occurred in children aged 5-14 years. Ten percent of the injured were hospitalized.

Conclusions The ISS provided detail regarding ED treated injuries and can assist in the development of strategies for prevention. In particular, messages regarding helmet use, obeying transit signals, as well as activities to strengthen laws appear to be critical.