Citation

Beattie TF, Currie CE, Williams JM, Wright P. Inj. Prev. 1998; 4(3): 228-231.

Affiliation

Accident and Emergency Department, Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Edinburgh, UK.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1998, BMJ Publishing Group)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

9788097

PMCID

PMC1730394

Abstract

Many different methods for assessing injury severity have appeared in the literature. This paper discusses the commonly used measures, many of which are subjective and depend on clinical practice or sociological factors. Even if apparently objective measures are used their appropriateness for use in children is questionable. Particular problems occur with scoring or categorising events such as poisoning, choking, and near drowning. Researchers need to reach a consensus on injury severity reporting to ensure comparability between studies and programs for injury prevention.