Impact of trauma system preparedness on the outcomes of severe injuries among child populations.

Severe child trauma poses a heavy burden upon the public's health and the nations' economies, in terms of mortality, morbidity, and disability. The burden varies by the maturity level of the adopted trauma system. This work aimed to identify the impact of trauma system maturity on the outcomes of care of severely injured children. Discharge data for the hospitalized trauma children in Florida (mature trauma system) and Indiana (immature trauma system) were retrospectively analyzed. All severely injured children, 1-15 years of age with an injury severity score ≥25 during 1999-2000 were included. Assessment involved the differences in specified treatment procedures, survival rates, hospital length of stay, and the need for post-hospital institutional care. Analysis revealed that Indiana children significantly stay longer in hospital, and that no differences in the rates of patient mortality, discharge-home, and selected procedures were found. Trauma system maturity impacts the volume and complexity of interventions, as well as the mortality, morbidity, and disability associated with severe children and adolescent trauma. The cost of such burden could be directed to improving the quality of the state's injury management services.