Abstract

SALAZAR CUBA, Viviana; SANDOVAL MORON, Oscar  and  MEJIA SALAS, Héctor. Prevalence and mortaliti due to accidents in children under 10 years of age. Rev. bol. ped. [online]. 2002, vol.41, n.3, pp.120-124. ISSN 1024-0675.

Objective: To describe the characteristics of accidents in children treated at the Dr. Ovidio Aliaga Uría Children´s Hospital Design: Descriptive, prospective study of a series of cases Participants: 422 children under 10 years of age that were treated at the Children's Hospital because of accidents. Study method: All parents and tutors were interviewed to obtain general information on the patient, family, social and economic background and details about the accident. Results: Out of 422 cases, 55% were male, average age 5.3 years. In 84% of all cases the child was not with his parents and 56 % were under the care of a minor. 20% of the patients had a history of previous accidents within the past 6 months. The most common accidents were: falls (36%), burns (20%), traffic accidents (15.4%), poisoning (6%) and animal bites (4,5%). The most common lesions were: wounds (31%), burns (17%), fractures (16%) and the rest were superficial lesions. Conclusions: Accidents are an important cause of consultation and admission at a third level hospital. It is important to mention that there are preventable risk factors, like the absence of parents, the presence of flammable objects in the home, leading to burns. In view of these facts we consider it important to educate the population in the prevention of home accidents.

Keywords : Rev. Soc. Bol. Ped. 2002; 41 (3): 120-124; Accidents; burns; poisons; bites.