Male children prone to ‘unintentional injuries’

A retrospective study to find out about unintentional injuries during the festive months of September and October revealed that injuries were more common in the age group of 1-5 years and that male children were at high risk of unintentional injuries. The study, published last month in the Indian Journal of Child Health, was conducted on 180 children who visited the paediatric emergency department of Sir Ganga Ram Hospital.

“There were three main types of injuries — trauma (89.3 per cent), burns (5 per cent), and dog bites (5 per cent). Fall from height (49.4 per cent) was the most common reason in children who presented a history of trauma. About 50 per cent of the injuries were sustained on the head,” said the study. According to Dr Yachana Chaudhary, the author of the study from the department of community medicine at Gandhi Medical College in Bhopal, injuries can be divided into intentional and unintentional. Intentional injuries include child abuse and violence against children whereas unintentional injuries include falls, road traffic accidents, drowning, poisoning, and burns.

As per a World Health Organisation report, injuries are the sixth leading cause of childhood mortality throughout the world. However, in India, it is the fifth leading cause of childhood mortality among children under 5 years of age. “It is a common observation that in India, during festival seasons such as Makar Sankranti and Holi, the incidence of falls from roof increases because of unsupervised kite-flying. Similarly in Diwali, the incidence of burns increases significantly,” added Dr Suresh Gupta, senior consultant in Sir Ganga Ram Hospital.