Recognisable signs of a child suffering physical abuse
Adrian Powell in Paedophiles, Child Abuse and the Internet, 2018
Physical abuse can be suspected and identified on occasions, not as a direct result of finding an injury, but by the actions and general behaviour of the parents or carers at the time of the finding, and the circumstances surrounding the cause of the injury. Burns and scalds on the child’s body in unlikely places are usually the result of physical abuse. On babies and young children, black eyes are commonly caused through physical abuse. Violence is pervasive and the physical abuse of children frequently coexists with domestic violence. If bruises of different colours appear in the same area of a child’s body and appear to be overlapping each other, it is likely that the child is suffering repeated physical abuse. A child with a broken bone may walk and stand without an obvious display of injury or pain, but is unlikely to be able to sit without showing signs of discomfort.
Hypochondria
Francis X. Dercum in Rest, Suggestion, 2019
Hypochondria presents a characteristic clinical picture which hardly permits of error. Hypochondria is more frequently met with among men than among women, and is more common among those who are unmarried. It makes its appearance, as a rule, before middle life, being more frequent before forty than afterward. The underlying neuropathy of hypochondria is now and then revealed in the person of the patient. Thus, he may be delicate and neurotic in appearance. The tendency to hypochondria is not infrequently noted in childhood. A child, for instance, betrays unusual fear of illness or makes an excessive ado about trivial accidents, slight wounds or bruises. An analysis of the symptoms of hypochondria throws but little light upon the pathology of the affection. In children in whom a tendency to hypochondria is noted, every effort should be made to minimize the importance of affections from which they suffer or accidents through which they pass.
A brief history of managing the mentally ill
John A. Liebert, William J. Birnes in Psychiatric Criminology, 2016
We refer to psychiatric traumas resulting from combat, such as Posttraumatic stress disorder, as “invisible wounds of war.” The operative descriptor here is “invisible.” We cannot see the wound. It does not bleed, is not a palpable bruise, and cannot be reset like a broken limb. But it is nevertheless as painful and as debilitating as a wound from a piece of shrapnel tearing through flesh. The invisible nature of the wound is important as it relates to the entire field of study regarding mental illness. Before modern imaging instruments, psychiatric illnesses were indeed invisible to the naked eye and only identifiable by trained medical personnel who recognized the symptoms. But that does not mean that psychiatric illnesses were nonexistent before Freud. They were simply classified as something else and treated by sequestering the patient, often under the most brutal of environments.
Multiple injuries in a 3-year-old Nigerian girl: an extreme form of physical abuse
Published in Paediatrics and International Child Health, 2013
Oladele Simeon Olatunya, Saheed Oseni, Lawrence Oginni, Oyeku Akibu Oyelami, Titilayo Ibidapo
Physical abuse and other forms of child maltreatment occur worldwide. However, in developing countries such as Nigeria they are not often considered in the differential diagnosis. A 3-year-old girl is presented who sustained injuries including traumatic teeth extraction, multiple bruises, femoral shaft fracture and haemorrhage resulting in severe anaemia as a result of physical assault by her father. This case underscores the need for the implementation of appropriate legislation to combat child maltreatment in Nigeria.
Incidence and characteristics of unintentional injuries among children in a resource limited setting in Kampala, Uganda
Published in International Journal of Injury Control and Safety Promotion, 2018
Charles Ssemugabo, Trasias Mukama, Abdullah Ali Halage, Nino Paichadze, Dustin G. Gibson, Olive Kobusingye
Given that little is known about the epidemiology of unintentional injuries in children in low-income countries, this study sought to determine the incidence and characteristics of unintentional injuries among children aged ≤18 years in a slum community in Uganda. From a household survey, the incidence and odds ratios for factors associated with unintentional injury characteristics were calculated. Of 1583 children, 706 had suffered 787 unintentional injuries yielding an annual incidence rate of 497 injuries per 1000 children. Commonest injuries were cuts, bites or open wounds (30.6%) and bruises or superficial injuries (28.6%) with majority (75.5%) occurring at home. Boys were more likely to be injured at school (AOR 4.34; 95% CI 1.22–15.54) and to be injured from falls (AOR 1.41; 95% CI 1.01–1.96). Older children (12–18 years) were more likely to suffer from fractures (AOR 2.37; 95% CI 1.26–4.43), concussions and organ system injuries (AOR 3.58; 95% CI 1.03–12.39) and cuts, bites or open wounds (AOR 2.05; 95% CI 1.21–3.48). Older children were less likely to suffer burns or scalds as compared to the young children (AOR: 0.23; 95% CI 0.11–0.50). Unintentional injury incidence rate was high among children with most occurring in the homes.
Effect of local cold and hot pack on the bruising of enoxaparin sodium injection site: a randomized controlled trial
Published in Contemporary Nurse, 2016
Sara Amaniyan, Shokoh Varaei, Mojtaba Vaismoradi, Hamid Haghani, Christina Sieloff
Purpose: This study aimed to assess the effect of the application of local cold and cold-hot packs upon the size of bruising at the injection site of subcutaneous enoxaparin sodium.Methods: One-hundred and eighty patients with coronary diseases were allocated randomly to three groups: (i) local cold gel pack group; (ii) local cold-hot gel pack group; and (iii) control group. Assessment of the presence of a bruise was conducted at 24, 48 and 72 hours after the injections for all patients.Results: The cold-hot pack group had significantly less and smaller injection site bruising than the two other groups at 48 and 72 hours (both p < 0.001).Conclusions: The local application of cold-hot packs is more effective on reducing bruises following enoxaparin sodium injections when compared with local cold pack application alone.Thus, this process can improve the quality of nursing care for hospitalized patients receivingthese injections.
Related Knowledge Centers
- Capillaries
- Hematoma
- Hemorrhage
- Trauma
- Venule
- Blood
- NONpenetrating Wounds