ADVISED FOLLOW-UP AFTER EMERGENCY TREATMENT OF ADOLESCENTS WITH VIOLENCE-RELATED INJURIES

Objective: To compare the rate of advised medical follow-up for adoles cents with violence-related, nonsuicidal injuries versus other complai nts. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: Pediatric emergency depar tment (ED). Patients: All visits by adolescents, aged 13 to 18 years, during a one-week period from each season during 1992. Main outcome me asures/results: Advised medical follow-up for patients sustaining viol ence-related injuries versus other complaints were compared. Four hund red twenty-six visits were reviewed; 351(82%) resulted in discharge fr om the ED. Sixty-eight (16%) were classified as violence-related, nons uicidal. Male adolescents were more likely to sustain violence-related injuries (66% vs 34%, P < 0.01). There were no differences in admissi on rate or having a primary care provider (PCP) between the violence-r elated injury group and the group with other complaints. Adolescents w ith other complaints were twice as likely to have follow-up advised. P resence of PCP and older age were also positively associated with advi sed follow-up. Conclusion: Adolescents sustaining violence-related inj uries were less likely to have follow-up advised at the time of their ED visit than were adolescents presenting with other complaints. Viole ntly injured adolescents, at risk for recurrent violent injuries and p sychosocial sequelae, were less likely to have follow-up advised at th e time of their ED visit than were adolescents presenting with other c omplaints.