A review of stroller-related and pram-related injuries to children in Singapore.

Prams and strollers are commonly used in daily childcare. We aim to study the type and severity of injuries associated with prams and strollers in an Asian population. We performed a retrospective review of children below the age of 6 who presented to a tertiary paediatric hospital in Singapore, from January 2012 to June 2015, with such injuries. There were 248 pram-related and stroller-related injuries. The median age was 12.5 months old. 69 (27.8%) sustained open wounds, 17 (6.9%) suffered fractures or dislocations and 2 children had significant head injuries. 29 patients (11.7%) sustained injuries while on stairs or escalators. Most of the injuries (197 cases, 79.4%) occurred despite adult supervision. The need for intervention was associated with older age and entrapment injuries (p<0.001). Only appropriately sized prams and strollers without exposed hinges should be used. These should not be deployed on stairs and escalators.

Prehospital Transport for Pediatric Trauma: A Comparison of Private Transport and Emergency Medical Services.

OBJECTIVES: We describe the demographics of pediatric patients with trauma transferred using private transport (PT) versus emergency medical services (EMS) and evaluate the potential impact on their treatment and outcome. METHODS: We accessed data from our national trauma registry, a prospectively collected database. Data were extracted on all patients with trauma admitted to our institution between January 2011 and June 2013, with injury severity score (ISS) higher than 8. We categorized unstable injuries as head injuries, spinal injuries, or proximal long bone fractures. Major trauma was defined as the presence of any of the following: ISS of 16 or higher, intensive care unit (ICU) admission or death. RESULTS: Ninety children were studied, including 27 major trauma and 66 unstable injuries; 69 patients (77%) used PT. Most patients with major trauma (17/27, 63%) and unstable injuries (50/66, 76%) used PT. Compared with EMS patients, PT patients were younger, smaller, took longer for emergency department physician review and stayed longer in the emergency department. Rates of ICU admission were similar in both groups, but length of stay in ICU and total hospital stay were shorter in the PT group despite similar proportions of major trauma and unstable injuries as well as median ISS. Each group had 1 mortality. CONCLUSIONS: Most children with major trauma and unstable injuries were brought by PT, risking deterioration en route. Nevertheless, this does not seem to translate to worse outcomes overall.

Caregiver reported long-term outcomes in children with major trauma and traumatic brain injuries: A single-centre retrospective study.

Introduction: We aim to investigate the functional outcomes and long-term health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in children with major trauma associated with traumatic brain injury (TBI). Method: We performed a retrospective review of records among patients >2 and ≤16 years old in a tertiary paediatric hospital between January 2014 and October 2019 with major trauma (Injury Severity Score of ≥16) and TBI of all severities. We recorded each child's Glasgow Outcome Scale-Extended Pediatric Version (GOS-E Peds) at 12 months post-injury and Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL) scores at 6 and 12 months post-injury based on the parent proxy-report scales. Results: We included 53 patients with a median age of 9.0 years old (interquartile range 2.3-15.5). Most injuries were due to falls (30, 56.6%) or road traffic collisions (15, 28.3%); 41 patients (77.3%) required intensive care while 30 patients (56.6%) underwent neurosurgical intervention. Most patients (43, 81.1%) had GOS-E Peds scores of ≤2 at 12 months post-injury. We reported a significant mean difference between the 6- and 12-month parent-reported scores for physical functioning (6.6, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.3-12.8, P=0.041), psychosocial functioning (4.1, 95% CI 1.0-7.2, P=0.012) and overall scores (5.0, 95% CI 1.4-8.7, P=0.008). Compared with the validated PedsQL scores, our mean scores were higher across all domains at 12 months. Conclusion: With current standard of care, parents of children with major trauma and TBI reported gains in quality of life, physical, psychosocial and overall function between 6 and 12 months post-injury.

Parental knowledge and beliefs on the use of child car restraints in Singapore: a qualitative study.

INTRODUCTION: Road traffic injuries and fatalities represent a significant public health problem. In Singapore, compliance with appropriate child car restraints (CCRs) is poor. We aimed to understand parental knowledge, beliefs and barriers regarding the use of CCRs. METHODS: In this qualitative study, we conducted five focus group discussions with parents who drive with their children in private cars. Participants were recruited using the KK Women's and Children's Hospital's social media page. Guiding questions were derived by consensus following literature review and adaptation to the Singapore context, exploring parental perceptions of CCR use. Focus group interviews were then transcribed and analysed. RESULTS: 33 participants were recruited, with an age range of 28‒46 (mean age 35.5) years. They had a total of 46 children with ages ranging from 2.5 months to 14 years (mean age 4.2 years). Three key themes were identified: parental knowledge regarding CCRs, barriers to CCR use, and suggestions to increase CCR compliance. Barriers to compliance included lack of knowledge, difficult child behaviour and cultural norms. A multipronged approach was proposed to increase CCR use, including educating the public, reinforcing positive behaviour, legal enforcement as a deterrent to non-compliance, increasing CCR installation services, providing CCRs for taxi users and offering financial incentives. CONCLUSION: Non-compliance to CCR use is multidimensional, including multiple potentially modifiable factors. This study could inform ongoing collaborative injury prevention efforts among healthcare professionals, industry partners and the traffic police, using public education and outreach to reduce the burden of road traffic injuries.

Assessment of the Understanding of Concussion and Care Protocols Amongst Student Athletes and Coaches: A Qualitative Study.

Background: Pediatric sports-induced concussions have become a topic of interest and concern in the scientific community. Already, the literature is rich with studies that have identified numerous short-term and long-term consequences of childhood sports-induced concussions. However, there are very few studies that have identified how well the students who participate in concussion-prone sports and their coaches understand these consequences and how they can be avoided. This study aimed to explore student athletes' and their coaches' understanding of the concept of concussion and how it is managed both immediately after the injury occurs and during long-term recovery. Methods: This study utilized a qualitative design. The study was conducted in local and international schools in Singapore. Participants were recruited through purposive sampling. 42 student athletes aged 13-18 who participated in rugby, softball, football, cricket, volleyball, and/or water polo were recruited. Fourteen coaches who coached these same sports were also recruited. Four focus groups and three semi-structured interviews were conducted. Data collected were then analyzed with thematic analysis. Risk factors were assessed through four domains of focus: understanding of what concussion is; attitudes toward concussion; existing protocols for treating concussion; and return-to-school and return-to-play protocols. As this is a qualitative study, outcome measures were not identified. Results: Analysis of the data revealed four themes for each group. For student-athletes these included: limited understanding of concussion; non-reporting of injuries; variable supervision of athletes; and a lack of established return-to-school and return-to-play guidelines. For coaches these included: variable understanding of concussion; insufficient formal training in concussion management; limited medical support in managing injuries; and lack of understanding and adherence to return-to-school and return-to-play protocols. Conclusions: Of the themes identified, the most pressing was a lack of clearly defined return-to-play guidelines. This is an urgent issue that needs to be jointly addressed by healthcare professionals and schools with evidence-based guidelines.

A prospective surveillance of paediatric head injuries in Singapore: a dual-centre study.

OBJECTIVE: To study the causes of head injuries among the paediatric population in Singapore, and the association between causes and mortality, as well as the need for airway or neurosurgical intervention. DESIGN: This is a prospective observational study utilising data from the trauma surveillance system from January 2011 to March 2015. SETTING: Paediatric emergency departments (EDs) of KK Women's and Children's Hospital and the National University Health System. PARTICIPANTS: We included children aged <16 years presenting to the paediatric EDs with head injuries who required a CT scan, admission for monitoring of persistent symptoms, or who died from the head injury. We excluded children who presented with minor mechanisms and those whose symptoms had spontaneously resolved. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: Primary composite outcome was defined as death or the need for intubation or neurosurgical intervention. Secondary outcomes included length of hospital stay and type of neurosurgical intervention. RESULTS: We analysed 1049 children who met the inclusion criteria. The mean age was 6.7 (SD 5.2) years. 260 (24.8%) had a positive finding on CT. 17 (1.6%) children died, 52 (5.0%) required emergency intubation in the ED and 58 (5.5%) underwent neurosurgery. The main causes associated with severe outcomes were motor vehicle crashes (OR 7.2, 95% CI 4.3 to 12.0) and non-accidental trauma (OR 5.8, 95% CI 1.8 to 18.6). This remained statistically significant when we stratified to children aged <2 years and performed a multivariable analysis adjusting for age and location of injury. For motor vehicle crashes, less than half of the children were using restraints. CONCLUSIONS: Motor vehicle crashes and non-accidental trauma causes are particularly associated with poor outcomes among children with paediatric head injury. Continued vigilance and compliance with injury prevention initiatives and legislature are vital.