Dog bite injuries in children - a review of data from a South African paediatric trauma unit

dc.contributor.authorDwyer, J P
dc.contributor.authorDouglas, T S
dc.contributor.authorVan As, A B
dc.date.accessioned2017-05-17T10:43:15Z
dc.date.available2017-05-17T10:43:15Z
dc.date.issued2007
dc.date.updated2016-01-08T08:29:09Z
dc.description.abstractBackground and objective. Dog bites are a major cause of preventable traumatic injury in the paediatric population. We aimed to determine the epidemiology of dog bite injuries in a group of South African children with a view to developing potential preventive strategies. Design, setting, subjects. A retrospective review was done of patients presenting with dog bite injuries to the trauma unit at the Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital in Cape Town over a 13.5-year period. Results. We identified 1 871 children treated for 2 021 dog bite injuries during the study period. Dog bites accounted for 1.5% of all trauma unit presentations. Male children accounted for 68% of the patients. Children under 6 years of age were more likely to have sustained injuries to the head, face or neck, while children older than 6 years more commonly received injuries to the perineum, buttocks, legs or feet. Younger children were more likely to be attacked at home and older children outside the home. The most frequent injuries were superficial, and the majority of patients were treated with simple medication, dressing or suturing. There were no dog bite-related fatalities. Conclusion. The relationship between the geographical location of dog attacks on children and the age groups attacked suggests that strategies to prevent dog bites should target both parents supervising younger children at home, and older children who encounter dogs outside the home.
dc.identifier.apacitationDwyer, J. P., Douglas, T. S., & Van As, A. B. (2007). Dog bite injuries in children - a review of data from a South African paediatric trauma unit. <i>South African Medical Journal</i>, http://hdl.handle.net/11427/24350en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationDwyer, J P, T S Douglas, and A B Van As "Dog bite injuries in children - a review of data from a South African paediatric trauma unit." <i>South African Medical Journal</i> (2007) http://hdl.handle.net/11427/24350en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationDwyer, J. P., Douglas, T. S., & Van As, A. B. (2007). Dog bite injuries in children–a review of data from a South African paediatric trauma unit. South African Medical Journal, 97(8), 597-600.
dc.identifier.ris TY - Journal Article AU - Dwyer, J P AU - Douglas, T S AU - Van As, A B AB - Background and objective. Dog bites are a major cause of preventable traumatic injury in the paediatric population. We aimed to determine the epidemiology of dog bite injuries in a group of South African children with a view to developing potential preventive strategies. Design, setting, subjects. A retrospective review was done of patients presenting with dog bite injuries to the trauma unit at the Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital in Cape Town over a 13.5-year period. Results. We identified 1 871 children treated for 2 021 dog bite injuries during the study period. Dog bites accounted for 1.5% of all trauma unit presentations. Male children accounted for 68% of the patients. Children under 6 years of age were more likely to have sustained injuries to the head, face or neck, while children older than 6 years more commonly received injuries to the perineum, buttocks, legs or feet. Younger children were more likely to be attacked at home and older children outside the home. The most frequent injuries were superficial, and the majority of patients were treated with simple medication, dressing or suturing. There were no dog bite-related fatalities. Conclusion. The relationship between the geographical location of dog attacks on children and the age groups attacked suggests that strategies to prevent dog bites should target both parents supervising younger children at home, and older children who encounter dogs outside the home. DA - 2007 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town J1 - South African Medical Journal KW - Children KW - Dog bite injuries KW - Epidemiolog KW - Paediatric trauma unit KW - Preventive strategies KW - South Africa LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2007 T1 - Dog bite injuries in children - a review of data from a South African paediatric trauma unit TI - Dog bite injuries in children - a review of data from a South African paediatric trauma unit UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/24350 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/24350
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationDwyer JP, Douglas TS, Van As AB. Dog bite injuries in children - a review of data from a South African paediatric trauma unit. South African Medical Journal. 2007; http://hdl.handle.net/11427/24350.en_ZA
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisher.departmentDepartment of Human Biologyen_ZA
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Health Sciencesen_ZA
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.sourceSouth African Medical Journal
dc.source.urihttp://www.samj.org.za/index.php/samj
dc.subjectChildren
dc.subjectDog bite injuries
dc.subjectEpidemiolog
dc.subjectPaediatric trauma unit
dc.subjectPreventive strategies
dc.subjectSouth Africa
dc.titleDog bite injuries in children - a review of data from a South African paediatric trauma unit
dc.typeJournal Articleen_ZA
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
uct.type.publicationResearchen_ZA
uct.type.resourceArticleen_ZA
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