title: How many children remain fracture-free during growth? a longitudinal study of children and adolescents participating in the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study.
abstract: While much is known regarding the incidence and pattern of fractures during growth, information is sparse as to how many children fracture repeatedly and how many remain fracture-free during growth. The Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study, a birth cohort, whose members were questioned regularly throughout growth (at ages 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15 and 18 years) concerning injuries including fractures, has provided a unique opportunity to answer these questions. Life-table analysis showed that approximately half the children remained fracture-free throughout growth [girls 60.1%, (95% CI 54.7-65.0) and boys 49.3% (95% CI 44.0-54.4)]. Data on fracture history, for participants seen at every phase, was available for 601 members through to the age of 18 years (61.1% of the cohort seen at age 5 years). Two hundred and ninety-one of these 601 participants reported 498 fractures, with 172 sustaining a single fracture, and 119 more than one fracture (15.8% girls and 23.4% boys). The most common site of fracture was the wrist/forearm (24.1% of all fractures). We conclude that although bone fractures are a common adverse event in childhood, half of all children remain fracture-free throughout growth.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, Otago Medical School, University of Otago, Bunedin, New Zealand.
authors.forename: I E
authors.initials: IE
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Dow
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Goulding
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D017677:Age Distribution; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D050723:Fractures, Bone / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D015993:Life Tables; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D009104:Multiple Trauma / Q000453:epidemiology; D009520:New Zealand / Q000453:epidemiology