Search PubMedSearch

Biomedical subjects

C H Acton

Publications and source records attributed to C H Acton.

13 recordsLinked to original sources

Bicycle riding and oral/maxillofacial trauma in young children.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the frequency of oral/maxillofacial injuries in children who have had a bicycle incident and to relate this to the wearing of a protective helmet. DESIGN: Part of a larger prospective study in which self-administered questionnaires were completed by each child with bicycle-related injuries and their parents or caregivers. SETTING: Two tertiary-referral children's hospitals (between 1 April 1991 and 30 June 1992) and three general hospitals (between 1 August 1991 and 30 June 1992) in Brisbane. PARTICIPANTS: 813 children aged under 15 years who presented to the accident and emergency departments with bicycle-related injuries. RESULTS: There were 321 children (39.5%) who sustained oral/maxillofacial injuries. Of 1355 injuries, 340 (25.1%) were to the facial region. Of the 153 children admitted to hospital for bicycle-related injuries, 94 (61.4%) had oral/maxillofacial injury as the primary reason for admission (including those with a reduced level of consciousness). Of the 66 children with a reduced level of consciousness, 53 had concomitant facial injuries. The most common oral/maxillofacial injuries were facial abrasions, cuts and lacerations (50.3%); soft tissue injuries to the mouth (30.9%); and dentoalveolar trauma (9.7%). Over half of these children were wearing bicycle helmets. Of the 15 facial fractures (mandibular, nasal, and zygomatico-orbital), 10 were in children wearing helmets. CONCLUSIONS: Oral/maxillofacial injuries are frequent among child bicycle riders, even for those who wear Australian Standards-approved bicycle helmets. Bicycle helmets need design modifications (e.g., lightweight chin protectors) to more adequately protect the face and jaw.

Adolescent

Children and bicycles: what is really happening? Studies of fatal and non-fatal bicycle injury.

OBJECTIVES: The objectives of the study were to ascertain the causes of accidents, injuries, and deaths in children who ride bicycles. Fatality and injury rates were also studied in order to compare with other studies. METHODS: Two studies of children were undertaken in children aged less than 15 years. In the first (retrospective fatality study), children who died as a result of a bicycle incident during the period 1981-92 were reviewed. In the second (prospective injury study) data were obtained prospectively between April 1991 and June 1992 about children who were injured while riding a bicycle and treated at a public hospital in Brisbane. RESULTS: Study 1: fatality rates for boys were twice those for girls. The rate was highest for boys of 14 years in the metropolitan area at 6.23/100,000. All deaths involved vehicles, and the majority involved head injury or multiple injuries including head injury. Study 2: similar numbers of children were injured at onroad and off-road locations. Faculty riding was described by the rider or caregiver as the cause in 62.5% of cases. The most common time of injury was between 3 and 6 pm on both school and non-school days. Only 5.5% of all incidents involved a moving vehicle. CONCLUSIONS: Bicycle riding by children is a common cause of injury, particularly for boys. Equal numbers of injuries occurred on the road as at other locations. Faulty riding caused most accidents. Injury prevention for bicycle riders should involve not only compulsory wearing of helmets, but should also include education and training about safe riding habits, separation of motorised vehicles from bicycles, modified helmet design to incorporate facial protection, and improved handlebar design.

Accident Prevention

Bicycle incidents in children--abdominal trauma and handlebars.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the frequency and causes of bicycle related abdominal injuries in children and to examine the pattern of presentation. DESIGN: The study was a prospective study of bicycle related injury in children less than 15 years of age presenting to two paediatric hospitals (15 April-30 June 1992) and three general hospitals (1 August 1991-30 June 1992). RESULTS: In a series of 813 children, 41 sustained non-penetrating abdominal trauma due to a bicycle incident. In 21 cases, handlebar trauma was responsible. Ten of these children suffered life-threatening intra-abdominal injury. Handlebars with no plastic or foam covering of the metal ends were involved in all ten cases. In several of these cases, presentation to hospital was delayed and in others confirmation of the extent of injury took up to 48 hours. The length of hospital stay for those with significant intra-abdominal organ damage ranged from two to 156 days. CONCLUSIONS: Intra-abdominal trauma must be considered when dealing with children who are victims of bicycle trauma. Impact with handlebars may have occurred and some form of padded protection of handlebar ends is recommended unless their design can be suitably modified.

Abdominal Injuries

The mandibular infected buccal cyst--a reappraisal.

The mandibular infected buccal cyst was first described over ten years ago as a discrete pathological entity found only in children. The features of this lesion have been consistently described as a buccal location adjacent to erupting first molar teeth, a thick, hyperplastic non-keratinized epithelial lining, expansion of buccal cortex and associated infection. The paradental cyst had been described some years previously. This lesion was noted to have a similar non-specific hyperplastic non-keratinized epithelial lining but was described as being associated predominantly with third molar teeth in young adults. Recently investigators have called for the mandibular infected buccal cyst to be reclassified as a variant of the paradental cyst. In this paper, ten previously unreported cases of mandibular infected buccal cysts are presented and the evidence for their reclassification as paradental cysts is advanced.

Bacterial Infections