Firearm injuries in pediatric surgery: Pediatric trauma center experiences.

Abstract

Background: This study aimed to evaluate the epidemiological data on thoracic and abdominal firearm injuries in children treated by pediatric surgeons at a pediatric trauma center.

Methods: Children hospitalized with firearm injuries from 2015 to 2022 were retrospectively analyzed. Patient demographics, affected organs, treatment, and length of hospital stay were analyzed retrospectively.

Results: The mean age of the patients was 12.43+-2.31 years; 27 (84.4%) were male and five (15.6%) were female. Bullet injuries were associated with higher severity and often required major surgical intervention, whereas pellet injuries were generally managed conservatively. For thoracic injuries, conservative management was considered effective for stable cases without immediate life-threatening complications, whereas abdominal injuries more often required invasive surgical approaches. Notably, unintentional firearm injuries were more common in younger children, whereas intentional injuries were more common in older adolescents. This age-related pattern highlights a statistically significant correlation between age and type of firearm injury (p = 0.002). Also, the majority of patients with thoracic injuries underwent minor surgeries, whereas those with abdominal injuries mostly underwent major surgeries Conclusion: Our study indicates that accidental firearm injuries are more common among younger age groups, whereas intentional firearm injuries tend to occur more frequently among older children.