RESUMEN
INTRODUCTION: Every year in France dog bites lead to several thousand visits to emergency departments and numerous hospital admissions. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to describe the sequelae 16 months after dog bites. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Following an initial epidemiological study on the severity of 485 dog bites carried out in 8 hospital emergency departments between May 1, 2009, and June 30, 2010, a second study investigating sequelae 16 months after the bite was conducted among 298 patients between September 2010 and December 2011. Data concerning patients' sequelae were collected by telephone or email. RESULTS: Almost half of respondents (47%) reported sequelae; of those patients, most of these reports were aesthetic (9/10). There were more sequelae when the bite was located in the head region or the lower limbs. Sequelae were more frequent among women, when the weight of the biting dog was higher, and when the initial severity of the bite was greater. On the other hand, the link between the patient and the dog, the sex of the dog, the type of aggression, and the age of the patient (< 15 years or ≥ 15 years) had no impact on the occurrence of sequelae. One patient in 7 still experienced pain 16 months after the bite; women were more likely to experience pain at that timepoint. No articles on dog bite sequelae were found in the literature. CONCLUSIONS: The dissemination of these results among professionals (veterinarians and doctors) and the general population will contribute to making dog owners more aware of the risk of bites and the means of avoiding them.