Blunt abdominal trauma in child: Epidemiological, diagnostic, and therapeutic analysis of 55 cases

Abstract

Objective: The objective of this study was to report the epidemiological, diagnostic, therapeutic, and evolutionary aspects of blunt abdominal trauma in children. Patients and Methods: We carried out a descriptive retrospective study which collected between 55 children of victims of abdominal bruises and the children's surgery department of the Aristide Le Dantec hospital in Dakar between January 1, 2009, and December 31, 2015. The parameters studied were as follows: age, sex, circumstances and mechanisms, hemodynamic status, abdominal table, imaging, associated lesions, and treatment. Results: The mean age was 7.2 years. Boys were more affected with a sex ratio of 3.58. Road accidents were the most frequent cause of accidents with 50.9%. Thirty-six lesions of solid and hollow organs were recorded. The liver was the most affected organ (23.63% of patients), followed by spleen (9.1%) and kidney (7.3%). Multiple trauma was observed in 30.9% of patients with extra-abdominal lesions involving the thorax (64.7%), the skull (35.3%), and the pelvis (35.3%). Forty-seven patients (85.45%) received conservative treatment with a success rate of 93.62%; 11 patients (20%) underwent surgery. The overall morbidity rate was 14.54%, and mortality was 1.81%. Conclusion: Abdominal bruising in children is more common than wounds in the abdomen. Road accidents are the main etiology. Conservative treatment is in vogue in the service and gives very good results.