title: [Spinal cord and vertebral column injuries in children].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Analysis of main factors of spinal cord and vertebral column injuries in our environment.
  
  
  METHODS
  We reviewed the data collected from the patients (n = 2640) admitted to our hospital because of trauma and included in our Registry from January 1995 to April 2002. Among this group, 86 patients (3.3%) had spinal cord and vertebral column injuries and were included in the study.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Group gender distribution was 45 males and 41 females. In our group, 71 patients suffered vertebral fractures, 3 of them with spinal cord injuries (4.2%), 13 patients with vertebral subluxation, 11 of them between C1-C2, and 2 patients with spinal cord injury without radiographic abnormality. Only 71 patients, 4.9% of the total of the patients who were admitted with any type of fracture (n=1457), suffered vertebral fractures. These patients suffered 130 vertebral fractures, 35 of them (49.3%) suffered multiple fractures. Thoracic vertebrae were the most frequently affected (n=82, 63%). The most frequent localization was T4 toT8 (n=50, 38.5% and T11 to L2 (n=41, 31.5%). Age ranged between 12 and 15 years (n=35, 49.3%), with only 5 patients under 6 years. 90.9% of the patients with lumbar fractures were older than 8 years and 76.9% of the patients with cervical fractures were over 8 years. Motor vehicle accident was the most common cause in our series (n=20, 23.3%). 81% of these patients did not use safety belt. Ten children with cervical injuries were seen by medical staff at the prehospital stage, and only 4 of them arrived to Hospital with cervical collar. There were thirty five patients with thoracic or lumbar injuries but only 27 of them were transferred to our Institution by ambulance. Surgery was required in 2 patients, both of them with unstable fractures. Mean hospital stay was 17,1 days (range 2-37 days).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Group gender distribution is similar between males and females and the incidence in our series is higher than other series of the literature. Thoracic injuries are the most frequent. It is necessary to improve prehospital management of these patients and to increase the use of safety belt. Spine injury incidence increased with age.
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Cirugía Pediátrica. Hospital Infantil Gregorio Marañón, Madrid.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Parente
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Navascués
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Hernández
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Sánchez-París
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cañizo
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cerdá
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Molina
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: De Tomás
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: De Agustín
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Matute
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Vázquez
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D017677:Age Distribution; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D013030:Spain / Q000453:epidemiology; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology*; D013124:Spinal Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology*