Papers
Importance of bruising associated with paediatric fractures: prospective observational study
BMJ 1998; 317 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.317.7166.1117 (Published 24 October 1998) Cite this as: BMJ 1998;317:1117
- M O Mathew, specialist registrar in orthopaedics,
- N Ramamohan, specialist registrar in orthopaedics,
- G C Bennet, consultant orthopaedic surgeon
- Department of Orthopaedics, Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Glasgow G3 8SJ
- Correspondence to: Mr Bennet
- Accepted 5 May 1998
Editorial by Eastwood
Few data are published on the bruising seen in association with paediatric fractures. What little can be found is set in the context of non-accidental injury. Differing opinions about the importance of bruising have been expressed by those working on medicolegal cases. 1–3 The force necessary to fracture a normal bone is thought to result invariably in external evidence of trauma. 1 The absence of such bruising has been taken to imply that minimalforce was required to produce the fracture—that is, the fracture occurred because of metabolic bone disease or osteogenesis imperfecta. 2 3
Subjects, methods, and results
We prospectively assessed 93 acute fractures in 88 normal …