Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Sep;89(9):3881-3883.
doi: 10.1177/00031348231173951. Epub 2023 May 8.

Changes in Pediatric Non-accidental Trauma Emergency Department Visits During and Following the COVID-19 Lockdown

S Austin Gilchrist  1 , Jennifer Stanfield  2 , Martin Aaron M Tan  3 , R Chace Hicks  1 , Alexander Urevick  1 , Tanner Cabbage  4 , S Dave Bhattacharya  5
Affiliations

Changes in Pediatric Non-accidental Trauma Emergency Department Visits During and Following the COVID-19 Lockdown

S Austin Gilchrist et al. Am Surg. 2023 Sep.

Abstract

A level 1 pediatric trauma registry database was examined for all non-accidental trauma (NAT) emergency department visits between 2016 and 2021, and average injury severity score assigned to those patients with physical injuries over 2019-2021. There was a decline in NAT visits in 2020 (267) from prior years (343 visits average over 2016-2019), with subsequent increase in 2021 (548). Injury severity score increased (ISS) in 2020 (7.3) when compared to 2019 (5.71), with a decline in average ISS in 2021 (5.42). This data highlights the potential for missed abuse during closures with increased detection following reopening. Our data regarding ISS demonstrates the pediatric population is at risk of more severe abuse during times of familial stress. We need increased awareness that periods of vulnerability to NAT exist, as seen during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Keywords: COVID-19; child abuse; injury severity score; non-accidental trauma.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Total number of pediatric patients with visits to the emergency department for confirmed or suspected abuse from 2016 to 2021.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Global Status Report on Preventing Violence against Children. Geneva: World Health Organization, 2020. License: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO.
    1. Bessoff KE, Han RW, Cho M, et al.Epidemiology of pediatric trauma during the COVID-19 pandemic shelter in place. Surg Open Sci. 2021;6:5-9. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Lawson M, Piel MH, Simon M. Child maltreatment during the COVID-19 pandemic: Consequences of parental job loss on psychological and physical abuse towards children. Child Abuse Negl. 2020;110(Pt 2):104709. doi:10.1016/j.chiabu.2020.104709 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Brooks-Gunn J, Schneider W, Waldfogel J. The great recession and the risk for child maltreatment. Child Abuse Negl. 2013;37(10):721-729. doi:10.1016/j.chiabu.2013.08.004 - DOI - PMC - PubMed