Seat belt fracture with late development of an enterocolic fistula in a child. A case report.

STUDY

DESIGN

A case report of a 9-year-old boy treated at a pediatric trauma center for a flexion-extension spiral fracture with late development of an enterocolic fistula subsequent to a high-velocity motor vehicle accident.

OBJECTIVES

To increase the awareness of possible delayed bowel complications associated with flexion-distraction injuries of the spine in children.

SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: Flexion-distraction fractures of the spine in children wearing lap seat belts, so-called "Chance" fractures, are an increasingly common result of high-velocity collisions. This type of fracture, referred to as a seat-belt fracture, is often associated with duodenal or jejunal tears. Although such intra-abdominal injuries are common in such fractures secondary to this type of trauma, the occurrence of an enterocolic fistula has never been reported.

METHODS

A review of all pediatric Chance fractures managed at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario, as well as a literature review of all reported series of flexion-distraction injuries to the spine in children, were performed.

RESULTS

The subtle and prolonged symptomatology of this lesion and its similarity to a cast syndrome is emphasized.

CONCLUSION

Because the orthopedic surgeon is usually the primary care-giver for children with this type of seat-belt trauma, an appreciation of the possibility of a delayed onset enterocolic fistula with its symptomatology is essential to avoid prolonged morbidity.