Telethon Institute for Child Health Research, 100 Roberts Road, Subiaco, Perth, Western Australia 6008, Australia.
J Epidemiol Community Health. 2010 Sep;64(9):784-8. doi: 10.1136/jech.2009.093393. Epub 2009 Sep 23.
To determine whether children who have child maltreatment allegation or substantiation have a higher rate of general hospital admissions and injury related admissions when compared to other children and to investigate other types of admissions, such as mental health, infections and admissions due to external causes.
A prospective matched case-control study of children born in Western Australia between 1990 and 2005 using de-identified record linked Child Protection and Hospital Morbidity data. Rates of prior hospital admissions for cases versus controls were calculated, and conditional logistic regression was used to estimate the effect of hospital admission rate on the risk of child maltreatment allegation and substantiated allegation.
Children with child maltreatment allegations and substantiations had higher mean prior admission rates compared to controls. Higher rates of general admissions and admissions for injuries, infections, mental and behavioural disorders, and external causes of morbidity, were associated with a markedly increased risk of child maltreatment allegations and substantiation.
The hospital system plays not only an important role both in the surveillance of maltreatment-related injuries and conditions but also in the role of prevention in the referral of families who may need support and assistance in ensuring the health and safety of their children. This research highlights the importance of moving to electronic patient records in identifying children who have high rates of admissions and the types of conditions they have previously presented with, particularly for injuries, mental and behavioural disorders and external causes of admissions.
与其他儿童相比，确定是否有被指控或证实遭受虐待的儿童其一般住院率和与伤害相关的住院率更高，并调查其他类型的住院情况，如心理健康、感染和因外部原因导致的住院。
这是一项针对 1990 年至 2005 年期间在西澳大利亚出生的儿童的前瞻性病例对照研究，使用去识别的儿童保护和医院发病数据进行记录链接。计算了病例与对照组之间先前住院的住院率，并使用条件逻辑回归估计了住院率对虐待儿童指控和证实指控风险的影响。
与对照组相比，被指控和证实遭受虐待的儿童的平均先前住院率更高。更高的一般住院率和因伤害、感染、精神和行为障碍以及发病的外部原因而住院的比例与遭受虐待儿童指控和证实指控的风险显著增加有关。
医院系统不仅在监测与虐待相关的伤害和疾病方面发挥着重要作用，而且在对可能需要支持和援助的家庭进行转介方面也发挥着预防作用，以确保其儿童的健康和安全。本研究强调了在识别具有较高住院率和他们之前出现过的疾病类型的儿童方面，向电子病历转变的重要性，特别是在伤害、精神和行为障碍以及因外部原因导致的住院方面。
