title: Prevalence of soft tissue injuries in pediatric patients and its relationship with the quest for treatment.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Soft tissue injuries (STI) are common in children and adolescents. This retrospective study evaluated the frequency of STI, gender, type of injury, and its location in pediatric patients, comparing the different age groups and how the presence of these lesions influences the pursuit for immediate care.
  
  
  METHODS
  Medical records of patients 0-15 years old who had been treated between 2005 and 2013 at the Dental Trauma Surveillance Center, School of Dentistry, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro were included in this study. Records with incomplete data and those in which the patient took more than 2 weeks to seek attendance were excluded. The data collected included the age and gender of the patient, the frequency, type and location of the injury, and immediate treatment (<24 h). Data were analyzed descriptively and with the chi-square test (P ≤ 0.05).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of the 543 patients who met the eligibility criteria, 56.2% had STI, and males (65.6%), and the age group of 0-3 years (39.7%) were the most affected. The concomitant presence of lesions in the intra- and extra-oral region was the most frequent in all age groups. In the extra-oral region, contusion (20.7%) and abrasion (19.3%) were more common to the upper lip and laceration to the lower lip (18.4%). In the intra-oral region, the injury was more frequent to the gums (41%), while the lips were the most affected by abrasion (12.2%) and laceration (24.9%). Regardless of the age groups, the pursuit for immediate care was statistically influenced by the presence of soft tissue lesions (P < 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We conclude that there is a high prevalence of STI in the study sample; the lesions were more common in boys and in patients aged 0-3 years. The presence of STI proved to be a determining factor for the pursuit for immediate care.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Dentistry and Orthodontics, School of Dentistry, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
authors.forename: Thais Rodrigues Campos
authors.initials: TR
authors.lastname: Soares
authors.affiliation: Pedro II College, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
authors.forename: Ana Carolina Uchôa
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Barbosa
authors.affiliation: Pedro II College, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
authors.forename: Symone Nisa Serafim de
authors.initials: SN
authors.lastname: Oliveira
authors.affiliation: Pedro II College, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
authors.forename: Evelyn Mendes
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Oliveira
authors.affiliation: Department of Dental Clinic, School of Dentistry, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
authors.forename: Patricia de Andrade
authors.initials: Pde A
authors.lastname: Risso
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Dentistry and Orthodontics, School of Dentistry, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
authors.forename: Lucianne Cople
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Maia
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008446:Maxillofacial Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000628:therapy*; D015995:Prevalence; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012737:Sex Factors; D017695:Soft Tissue Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000628:therapy*
keywords: child; incidence; soft tissue