• Hakem Alomani, Abdulbaset Fareed, Hassan Ibrahim, Ahmed Shaltoot, Ahmed Elhalawany, Mohammad Alhajjaj, Abdullah Dakhel, Muath Alshammasi, and Osamah Almosallam.
• From the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, Maternity and Children Hospital, Buraidah, Qassim, Saudi Arabia.
• Ann Saudi Med. 2021 May 1; 41 (3): 165-170.

BackgroundTrauma is one of the leading causes of pediatric mortality so the prevention of pediatric trauma is an important goal of any healthcare system. There are only a few studies on pediatric trauma in Saudi Arabia. The availability of data is vital for healthcare leaders in planning for healthcare services.ObjectiveAssess the epidemiology, patterns, and outcome of trauma in the pediatric population in the Qassim region in Saudi Arabia.DesignDescriptive medical records review.SettingA single-center, academic specialized pediatric referral hospital.Patients And MethodsWe reviewed all electronic and paper records for children (<14 years of age) admitted with a diagnosis of trauma to Maternity and Childrens Hospital (MCH) in Buraidah city in the two-year period between January 2017 and December 2018.Main Outcome MeasureType of injury, length of stay, and mortality.Sample Size133 children.ResultIn this cohort, 77 cases (58%) were admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) and 56 (42%) to the pediatric surgery ward. The median (interquartile range) age was 5 (1.1-8) years, and 92 (69%) were boys. The most frequent trauma was road traffic accidents, accounting for 70 cases (52%), followed by fall from a height for 40 (30%) cases. Traumatic brain injury was the most frequent type of injury, accounting for 56 cases (42%), and blunt abdominal trauma was in 11 cases (8.3%). Neurosurgery was the primary subspecialty actively involved in 62 cases (47%). Of the injured children who were admitted to PICU, 36 (46%) needed mechanical ventilation support, while 7 (9%) of those admitted to PICU required the insertion of intra-costal drainage. The mortality in our study was 3.7% (5 cases); 4 of 5 deaths were secondary to road traffic accidents.ConclusionPediatric trauma is a serious problem in our region with high mortality compared to international benchmarks. Road traffic accidents are the leading type of pediatric trauma, followed by falls from height. Further studies and perhaps national efforts are needed to identify ways to prevent road traffic accidents, and optimize the data registry and trauma services.LimitationThere were many missing data and incomplete files that affect accuracy and preclude generalization.Conflict Of InterestNone.

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