ABSTRACT
26 pediatric patients of spinal injury, below the age of 15 were admitted to KyungPook National University Hospital from Jan. 1972 to Jun. 1987, which accounted for 5.2% of the entire cases of spinal injury during the same period. Most number of cases fell in the age brackets of 2-8 and 12-24. Causes of the cases were in the order of traffic accident(48%), falling, direct blow. sports. and stab injury. The sites ran in such order as cervical( 30.8%), thoracic, lumbar and thoracolumbar spine. The breakdown of clinical findings was: Grade I-8, Grade II-5, Grade III-4, and Grade IV-8. Forty percent of the cases were found with no radiological abnormalities, still keeping the neurological deficits. Fracture was classified as: simple-6, dislocation-7, and subluxation-2. Methods of treatment were: conservative-l4, traction-5, laminectomy-5, and fusion-1. All patients in the categories from Grade I to III recovered to a good state. In Grade N, one each for good and fair recovery was achieved, five were poor and one expired from complication of head injury.