title: Traumatic disruption of the abdominal wall: lap-belt injuries in children.
abstract: Traumatic abdominal wall hernia (TAWH) from high speed mechanism is a unique finding in adult trauma, and exceedingly rare in pediatrics. The majority of reports are of low-speed "handlebar" hernias associated with direct injury by bicycle handlebars. We report a series of three pediatric patients in motor vehicle collisions (MVC) who experienced TAWH by lap-belt and associated intra-abdominal injuries necessitating immediate operative intervention. Different operative approaches were used in each case to manage the varying types of disruptions. This adds to the pediatric literature the largest series of its kind.
authors.affiliation: Mercer University School of Medicine and Medical Center of Central Georgia, Departments of Surgery, Trauma and Surgical Critical Care, and Emergency Medicine, Macon, GA, USA. jrmoremen@gmail.com
authors.forename: Jacob R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Moremen
authors.forename: Don K
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Nakayama
authors.forename: Dennis W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Ashley
authors.forename: Matthew
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Astin
authors.forename: Tracy L
authors.initials: TL
authors.lastname: Nolan
mesh_terms: D000007:Abdominal Injuries / Q000209:etiology* / Q000601:surgery*; D034861:Abdominal Wall; D000063:Accidents, Traffic; D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D046449:Hernia, Abdominal / Q000209:etiology* / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012622:Seat Belts / Q000009:adverse effects*; D014949:Wounds, Nonpenetrating / Q000209:etiology* / Q000601:surgery*