Investigation of clinical findings and CT scan in children with minor head trauma.

Background: The most common cause of death or severe impairment in children older than one-year-old is traumatic brain injury (TBI). Assessing TBI in children with minor head trauma (MHT) using clinical findings from history-taking and a physical exam is crucial to minimizing unnecessary brain CTs and more accurately predicting TBI. We aimed to evaluate the findings of brain CT scans in children with mild head trauma and their relationship with clinical signs and symptoms to avoid unnecessary interventions in many children with MHT.

Methods: This cross-sectional-analytical study was performed to evaluate the findings of brain CT scans in children with MHT and their relationship with clinical signs and symptoms that were referred to Poursina Hospital in Rasht in the first half of 2021. Children were divided into two age groups: under two years and 2-12 years, and analyzed separately. Initially, a list containing all demographic information, patients' clinical signs, and symptoms were prepared. The collected data were then analyzed using SPSS software version 26.

Results: According to the results, the mean age of patients was 66.01 months and 88 were boys (56.4%). The most common mechanism of injury was falling from a height. Most patients had isolated head injuries. Among the accompanying injuries, facial injuries were the most common. Among the clinical factors studied, cranial fracture on CT scan and GCS less than 15 were significantly associated with the occurrence of traumatic brain injury on CT scan. In addition, cranial fracture on CT scan, injury severity, and history of vomiting had the highest positive predictive value, respectively.

Conclusion: Standard history and clinical examination are sufficient to identify high-risk cases of pediatric head injuries. GCS is the most important risk factor for pediatric MHT. Requesting a CT scan is not recommended without these risk factors.