Summary of included studies
| Author | Study type* | Category of abuse | Category of head trauma | AHT: no. children | nAHT: no. children | Age group (years) | Imaging |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adamo et al26 | Cross-sectional | 2 | HI | 54 | 164 (suspected abuse actively excluded) | 0–3 | All had CT |
| Bechtel et al10 | Cross-sectional | 1+2 | HI | 15 | 67 (2 MVC, 65 falls (73% ≤4 ft)) | 0–2 | All had CT |
| Datta et al14 | Cross-sectional | 1 | SDH | 49 | 14 (3 trauma, 11 medical causes) | 0–2 | All had CT and/or MRI |
| Duhaime et al3 | Cross-sectional | 1 | HI | 24 | 76 (7 MVC, 69 other trauma); social worker review of all cases | 0–2 | CT and/or MRI as clinically indicated |
| Ettaro et al11 | Comparative case series (consecutive enrolment of all children) | 3 | HI | 89 | 288 (50 MVC, 238 other trauma) (excluded concussion/contusion/cerebral laceration) | 0–3 | All had CT and/or MRI |
| Ewing-Cobbs et al15 | Prospective longitudinal study (consecutive case enrolment) | 1 | TBI | 31 | 29 (18 MVC, 11 other trauma) | 0–6 | All had CT and/or MRI |
| Feldman et al16 | Prospective comparative case series (consecutive case enrolment) | 2 | SDH | 39 (12 indeterminate cause) | 15 (9 MVC, 3 falls >10 ft, 3 other trauma) | 0–3 | All had CT |
| Goldstein et al17 | Cross-sectional | 1 | TBI | 14 | 26 (16 MVC, 10 other trauma) | 0–16 | All had CT and/or MRI |
| Hettler et al18 | Cross-sectional | 1+3 | TBI | 49 | 114 (8 MVC, 58 falls >3 ft, 37 falls <3 ft, 11 other) | 0–3 | All had CT |
| Hymel et al27 | Case–control | 1 | TBI | 39 | 39 accidental head injury stated with active exclusion of abuse in cases of TBI | 0–4 | All had CT |
| Ichord et al19 | Consecutive cohort study | 3 | TBI | 30 | 22 (4 MVC, 18 falls) (excluded coagulopathy, penetrating injury, burns, arrest and CPR) | 0–3 | All had MRI |
| Keenan et al20 | Cross-sectional | 1 | TBI | 80 | 72 (43 MVC, 17 falls, 12 other trauma) | 0–2 | All had CT and/or MRI |
| Kelly et al21 | Cross-sectional | 1+3 | SDH | 41 | 23 (8 MVC, 14 falls (12 >1 m), 1 other) (excluded post-operative conditions, haematological disease) | 0-2 | All had CT and/or MRI |
| McKinney et al22 | Cross-sectional | 1 | HI | 11 | 38 (abuse actively excluded) | 0–3 | All had CT and/or MRI |
| Reece et al4 | Cross-sectional | 1, 2, 3 | HI | 51 | 144 (MVC, witnessed injuries) | 0–3 | CT and/or MRI as clinically indicated |
| Shugerman et al23 (SDH and EDH cases) | Cross-sectional | 1 | SDH | 28 SDH 2 EDH | 25 SDH, 32 EDH defined on discharge diagnosis, uncertain cases excluded | 0–3 | All had CT |
| Tung et al28 | Retrospective comparative case series | 1 | SDH | 9 | 38 (2 MVC, 17 other trauma, 19 birth injury) | 0–3 | All had CT |
| Tzioumi et al24 | Cross-sectional | 1 | SDH | 21 | 17 (5 MVC, 5 significant falls, 5 other trauma, 2 medical cause) | 0–2 | All had CT |
| Vinchon et al12 | Cross-sectional | 2 | HI | 57 | 93 (12 MVC, 55 trauma, 21 birth injury, 5 medical cause) | 0–2 | All had CT and/or MRI |
| Vinchon et al29 | Prospective comparative case series | 2 | HI | 12 | 8 (4 trauma, 4 birth related) | <1 | All had CT and MRI |
| Wells et al25 | Retrospective consecutive case series (equivalent to cross-sectional) | 2 | TBI | 148 (36 intent uncertain) | 109 witnessed trauma | 0-3 | All had CT |
↵* Study type is given according to author definition when stated. Where enrolment was consecutive and included all children from a defined population, this is stated and deemed equivalent to a cross-sectional study design.
AHT, abusive head trauma; CPR, cardiopulmonary resuscitation; EDH, extradural haemorrhage; HI, head injury; MVC, motor vehicle crash; nAHT, non-abusive head trauma; SDH, subdural haemorrhage; TBI, traumatic brain injury.