@article{ref1,
title="Does Bruising Help Determine Which Fractures Are Caused by Abuse?",
journal="Child maltreatment",
year="2009",
author="Valvano, Thomas J. and Binns, Helen J. and Flaherty, Emalee Gottbrath and Leonhardt, Dan E.",
volume="14",
number="4",
pages="376-381",
abstract="To determine whether the presence or absence of bruising can be used to differentiate between abusive and nonabusive fractures, a retrospective study was conducted of patients with acute fractures referred to a child abuse team. A bruise and fracture were considered associated if both occurred on the same body site. Chart summaries, excluding information on bruising, were reviewed by 2 abuse experts to assign cause of injury. Of the 150 participants, fractures of 93 (62%) were categorized as abusive and 57 (38%) as nonabusive. Bruising associated with a fracture was found for 26% of abused and 25% of nonabused children. Most children (61%) had no bruises anywhere on the body, and this did not differ significantly by cause of injury. The sensitivity of a bruise associated with a fracture to predict abuse was only 26%. The presence or absence of bruising was not useful to differentiate between abusive and nonabusive fractures. <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="1077-5595",
doi="10.1177/1077559508326356",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1077559508326356"
}