Population Density and Triage of Pediatric Firearm Injuries in a Rural Trauma System.
Am Surg
; 89(11): 4559-4564, 2023 Nov.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-35993395
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Rural pediatric firearm injuries require regional pediatric and trauma expertise. We evaluated county-level population density associations with transport, hospital interventions, and patient outcomes at a Level I pediatric trauma center serving a rural, statewide catchment area. MATERIAL ANDMETHODS:
The trauma registry of the only in-state pediatric trauma center was reviewed for firearm injuries in patients < 18 between 1/2013 and 3/2020. County-level population density was classified according to the United States Office of Management and Budget definitions for rural, micropolitan, and metropolitan areas.RESULTS:
364 patients were identified, including 7 patients who were re-injured. Mean age was 11.3 ± 4.5 y and patients were 79.4% male. 59.3% were transferred from a referring hospital. Median injury severity score was 5 (IQR 1-10); 88.0% required trauma center admission, and 48.2% required operative intervention. 7.4% were injured in a rural county, 46.4% in a micropolitan county, and 46.2% in a metropolitan county. Patients from rural counties were more likely to be unintentionally injured (72.0%) than those from micropolitan (54.4%) or metropolitan counties (44.0%, P = .04). While need for inpatient admission and length of stay were similar, those transported from rural counties had significantly longer transport times (P < .01) and less frequent need for operative intervention (P = .03), as well as trends toward lower injury severity (P = .08) and mortality (P = .06).CONCLUSION:
Management of pediatric firearm injury is a unique challenge with significant regional variability. Opportunities exist for outreach, telehealth, and decision support to ensure equitable distribution of resources in rural trauma systems. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE Epidemiological, Level III.Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Ferimentos por Arma de Fogo
/
Armas de Fogo
Tipo de estudo:
Prognostic_studies
Limite:
Adolescent
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Child
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Female
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Humans
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Male
País como assunto:
America do norte
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2023
Tipo de documento:
Article