Epidemiology of abusive head trauma in West Virginia children <24 months: 2000–2010

Few states have published statewide epidemiology of abusive head trauma (AHT). To examine the statewide epidemiology of AHT in West Virginia (WV), with the primary objective of establishing AHT incidence for comparison to national data, and to use as a baseline for comparison to incidence post-implementation of a statewide AHT prevention program. AHT cases in children less than 2 years old were identified from the 3 tertiary pediatric centers in WV. Cases were identified by using ICD-9 codes for initially identifying those with injuries which might be consistent with AHT, followed by medical record review to determine which of these met the criteria for inclusion as a case. Medical examiner data was used to find additional cases of AHT. Using the number of cases identified along with relevant census data, incidence of AHT was calculated. There were 120 cases of AHT treated in WV hospitals from 2000 to 2010, 100 of which were WV residents. The incidence was 36.1/100,000 children