Long-term follow-up of pediatric head trauma patients treated at Mulago National Referral Hospital in Uganda

J Neurosurg Pediatr. 2019 Jan 1;23(1):125-132. doi: 10.3171/2018.7.PEDS17601. Epub 2018 Oct 19.

Abstract

In Brief: This study used telephone surveys as a novel method of measuring health outcomes and tracking healthcare utilization in pediatric head trauma patients at the national referral hospital in Uganda. As the first-ever long-term follow-up of this patient population in Uganda, this work establishes a baseline of pediatric head trauma outcomes and lays the groundwork for tracking and improving outcomes for similar patients in low-resource settings.

Keywords: GCS = Glasgow Coma Scale; GOS = Glasgow Outcome Scale; GOS-E = Extended GOS; GOSE-Peds = Extended GOS–Pediatric Revision; MNRH = Mulago National Referral Hospital; RTI = road traffic injury; TBI = traumatic brain injury; Uganda; follow-up; global neurosurgery; head trauma; outcome; pediatric TBI.

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Brain Injuries, Traumatic / complications
  • Brain Injuries, Traumatic / mortality*
  • Child
  • Child, Preschool
  • Female
  • Follow-Up Studies
  • Glasgow Coma Scale
  • Health Surveys / methods
  • Health Surveys / statistics & numerical data
  • Humans
  • Infant
  • Interviews as Topic / methods*
  • Interviews as Topic / statistics & numerical data
  • Male
  • Quality of Life
  • Survival Rate
  • Telephone* / statistics & numerical data
  • Time Factors
  • Uganda / epidemiology