Articles: trauma.
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Violence is a growing problem worldwide. In Switzerland, interpersonal violence seems to be an increasing problem as well. The aim of the current study was to describe a comprehensive picture of violence in a swiss city with regard to medical and social aspects. ⋯ There were no relevant changes regarding the number of within the observation period. However, the proportion of affected females increased. Especially at the weekend, there is a need for preventive measures to reduce the high number of affected patients and the associated costs.
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Burns are a significant burden of pediatric injuries, particularly in low and middle-income countries, were more than 90% of burn-related pediatric deaths occur. This study explores pediatric burn-related injuries over a fifteen year time period in South Africa through an analysis of a pediatric trauma surveillance system. ⋯ Pediatric burn injuries are a significant contributor to the burden of child diseases in developing county hospitals. Pediatric surveillance systems, such as Childsafe South Africa's, are important to study epidemiologic changes in burn injuries. Findings suggest the need for targeted interventions to address the prevention of specific burn-related injuries.
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Raised blood pressure (and heart rate (HR)) due to anxiety in a clinical situation is well described and is called the white coat effect (WCE). It is not known whether the pain and anxiety that results from trauma causes a measurable WCE. ⋯ Median HR remained approximately 10 bpm higher in the TARN (injury) set compared to the HSE (non-injury, control) set, irrespective of age. Understanding that HR reacts in this way for mild to moderately injured patients is important as it will affect clinical interpretation during the initial assessment.
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The concept of the golden patient (GP) was introduced to our busy teaching hospital, in April 2009, with the aim of improving our trauma theatre start times. The GP is a pre-selected first patient on the following day trauma list who is medically fit with a clear surgical plan. ⋯ The introduction of the GP to our trauma lists has made a significant improvement to theatre start times and consequently surgical theatre efficiency.
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Trauma remains a substantial cause of paediatric morbidity and mortality. Femur fractures are common in children, and frequently are the result of high-energy mechanisms of injury. A complete description of missed injuries in this population has not previously been described. ⋯ There is a risk of missed injuries in the paediatric patient presenting with a femoral shaft fracture. Paediatric trauma teams and paediatric orthopaedic teams must be aware of this risk to help reduce the incidence of missed injuries. A tertiary trauma survey on children with paediatric femoral shaft fractures may help diagnose missed injuries.