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Battered child syndrome
Overview | Symptoms | Treatment | Prevention
Alternative names:
Non-accidental trauma (NAT); Child abuse; Shaken baby syndrome
Symptoms
- appearance at an emergency room with an injured child and an improbable explanation
- delayed appearance at an emergency room with an injured child
- bruise marks shaped like hands, fingers, or objects (belt)
- specific patterns of scalding seen when a conscious child is immersed in hot water
- burns from an electric stove, radiator, heater or other hot objects on the child's hands or buttocks
- cigarette burns on exposed areas or the genitals
- black eyes in an infant
- human bite marks
- lash marks
- choke marks around neck
- circular marks around wrists or ankles (twisting)
- sutures - separated
- bulging soft spot (fontanel) on the infants head
- unexplained unconsciousness in infant
Signs and Tests
Physical examination may show other injuries, such as:
- multiple retinal hemorrhages (bleeding in the back of the eye)
- internal damage such as bleeding or rupture of an organ from blunt trauma
- any fracture in an infant that is too young to walk or crawl
- evidence of epiphyseal fractures (often multiple) of long bones or spiral type fractures that result from twisting
- fractured ribs
- evidence of skull fracture(s) (occasionally multiple fractures of different ages may be present)
- subdural hematoma (collection of blood in the brain) without plausible explanation
Tests that reveal physical injuries include:
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