How non accidental traumas are diagnosed?
Do a thorough exam of the child’s skin and a skeletal survey. This will require removing all of the child’s clothes, as injuries to the genitals or buttocks won’t be seen if clothes are not removed. Document current fractures and evidence of previous fractures. Consider a bone scan to detect occult fractures.
What are non accidental injuries?
Aim Non accidental injury (NAI) is defined as any abuse inflicted on a person or knowingly not prevented by a care giver. The injury is not consistent with the account of its occurrence.
Which type of abuse involves non accidental?
Physical abuse is when a child is purposely physically injured or put at risk of harm by another person. This includes any non-accidental injury to a child, examples of which include hitting, kicking, slapping, shaking, burning, pinching, hair pulling, biting, choking, throwing, shoving, whipping, and paddling.
When should you suspect a non-accidental injury?
3,4 bruises over relatively protected parts of the body such as behind the ears, neck, trunk and buttocks should raise concern about a nonaccidental cause. 5 Patterned bruising strongly suggests a nonaccidental cause.
Who is the most likely to be responsible for non-accidental head trauma?
Factors that are intrinsic to the perpetrator of abuse include relationship to the child, and whether the perpetrator had been abused as a child. Perpetrators are likely to be young parents and female, however males are more likely to be responsible for episodes of NAT resulting in death (13).
Where do non-accidental injuries typically appear?
Spotting the Signs of a Non-Accidental Injury Common areas include the knees, elbows, shins and forehead. These locations tend to break a child’s fall when they are involved in a collision or trip, indicating that the trauma was unintentional. However, these marks can also appear in other locations.
Where do non-accidental injuries occur on a child?
Who is most likely responsible for non-accidental head trauma?
What is linear bruising?
It is well accepted that bruising on the skin that depicts an object or pattern is highly suspicious for inflicted trauma. [11-13] For example, a linear bruise may indicate that the child was hit with a stick-like object, and parallel linear bruises may indicate that the child was slapped with a hand.
What do pinch marks look like?
The most common types are grab marks or squeeze marks, oval-shaped bruises that resemble fingerprints. Grab marks usually are due to being held during violent shaking. The most common site is the upper arm or shoulder.