title: Reconstruction of face and scalp after dog bites in children.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  to evaluate the immediate reconstruction of face and scalp after canine bites in children.
  
  
  METHODS
  we conducted a prospective series of cases treated at the Emergency Unit of the Asa Norte Regional Hospital, Brasília - DF, from January 1999 to December 2014. At the time of patient admission to the emergency, the primary wound closure of the face and scalp bite was performed, regardless of the time or day of the event. The primary treatment of the bites was by means of direct suture, flaps rotation or grafting, depending on the type of wound and surgeon's decision.
  
  
  RESULTS
  the study comprised 146 children, with the zygomatic region and scalp being the main sites of head bites. All patients received surgical treatment within the first 24 hours after admission. There were no infectious complications in the cases studied.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  the findings suggest that the immediate closure of canine bites on the face and scalp in children is safe, even when carried out several hours after injury.
authors.affiliation: Plastic Surgery Service, Asa Norte Regional Hospital, Brasília, Distrito Federal, Brazil.
authors.forename: Jefferson Lessa Soares
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Macedo
authors.affiliation: Plastic Surgery Service, Asa Norte Regional Hospital, Brasília, Distrito Federal, Brazil.
authors.forename: Simone Corrêa
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Rosa
authors.affiliation: Medicine School, Superior School of Health Sciences, Brasilia, Distrito Federal, Brazil.
authors.forename: Murilo Neves DE
authors.initials: MN
authors.lastname: Queiroz
authors.affiliation: Medicine School, Superior School of Health Sciences, Brasilia, Distrito Federal, Brazil.
authors.forename: Tabatha Gonçalves Andrade Castelo Branco
authors.initials: TG
authors.lastname: Gomes
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001733:Bites and Stings; D002648:Child; D004285:Dogs; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital; D005151:Facial Injuries; D006801:Humans; D011446:Prospective Studies; D019651:Plastic Surgery Procedures; D012535:Scalp / Q000293:injuries / Q000601:surgery*; D013524:Surgical Flaps