J Trauma
-
Bicycle crashes are a major cause of injuries in childhood. The goal of this study was to determine the long-term disabilities caused by bicycle-related injuries, and to clarify the long-term treatment priorities of injured children. Hospital records of 372 children (ages 2-15 yr, median 9 yr; 232 boys and 140 girls) admitted with bicycle-related injuries from 1979 through 1986 provided clinical information, social service visits, in-hospital and outpatient rehabilitative interventions, and physical status at discharge. ⋯ Cognitive or behavior changes were noted in 31.7%, many noting changes in school performance (worse in 20.7%), behavior (13.4%), and sleep, particularly nightmares (34.1%). Recurrent injuries occurred in 52 children (14.4%), of whom ten (2.8%) required further hospital admission. Bicycle-related injuries cause significant short- and long-term disabilities among children.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)