All issues > Volume 29(9); 1986

Original Article

J Korean Pediatr Soc. 1986;29(9):988-998. Published online September 30, 1986.

Clinical Study of Childhood Accident.

Tae Jin Park¹, Sung Ryong Hyun¹, Woo Gill Lee¹, Soo Jee Moon¹, Keun Soo Lee¹

¹Department of Pediatrics^ College of Medicine, Hanyang Univeristy, Seoul, Korea

Abstract

Since the advent of various antibiotics and wide application of various preventive measure, the childhood mortality due to infectious disease has been declined conspiciously. However, childhood accident has been increasing in recent years and now a days it ranks the leading cause of childhood mortality and morbidity. Because most of the accident are unpredictable and occur suddenly, those result they occupy the majority of emergency room patients. The authors analysed 6,772 cased of childhood accidental injuries who visited emergency room of Hanyang University Hospital from May 3rd，1972 to December 31 th, 1983. The results analysed were as follows: 1) The number of injured children have been increased every year for 12 years, this increasing tendency was more marked from 1976 to 1979. 2) Male to female sex ratio was 1.6 : 1 and the age group of 3〜6 years showed highest incidence(31%). 3) Incidence of accident according to type were most common in trauma(76%) and the next in order of frequency were burn(9%), poisoning(8%), foreign body(6%). Traffic accident is most common(36%) in trauma. Incidence of traffic accident, fall, laceration were highest in the age group of 3〜6 years and that of burn, poisoning, foreign body were highest under 3 years of age. 4) The incidence of traffic accident and poisoning have been decreased as the year elapsed and that of accidental fall showed no significant change. Although the number of accident due to sports were not so many, they showed increasing tendency as the year elapsed. 5)As for the seasonal distribution, total accidental injuries occured more in spring(29%) and relatively less occured in winter(22%). Traffic accident, fall, laceration, foreign body and injury due to bicycle, occured much more in spring and summer and burn, poisoning occured more in spring and winter. 6)Traffic accident, fall, burn occured more at 12 : 00〜 16 : 00 hours and poisoning occured more at 4 : 00〜8 : 00 hours and 20 : 00〜24 : 00 hours. 7)Among the various vehicles, small automobiles which were increased in the year of 1976〜 1979, were the most common cause of traffic accidents. 8) As for the burn patients, scaldings(87%) were the most common cause, followed by flames, chemicals and electric burns in order of frequency. 9) As for poisoning, CO gas(41%) was the most common cause, followed by insecticides, rodenticides, aspirin, reserpin, barbiturates and DDS in order of frequency. During the year of 1976〜 1979, the number of CO poisoning were increased, then show the decreasing tendency during 1980〜 1983. Insecticides and rodenticides were decreased as the year elapsed. 10) As for the injured site, head injury(26%) was the most common and the next were right arm, left arm, thrunk, right leg and left leg in order of frequency. 11) Among total 6,772 cases of childhood accidental injury, 2,161 cases(32%) were hospitalized for further care. As to the motality, total 91 cases(4.2%) expired. Traffic accidents were the most common causes of death(56 cases) and highest mortality rate was observed in accidental fall(6.9%).

Keywords :Childhood accidnt.