Hospital-Based Study of Childhood Head Injuries at Federal Medical Centre Azare, Bauchi State, North East Nigeria

Childhood head injuries are a significant but often underappreciated cause of paediatric mortality and long-term disability. This retrospective descriptive study examines the epidemiology, clinical management, and outcomes of childhood head injuries at the Federal Medical Centre, Azare, Bauchi State, North East Nigeria, over a three-year period from January 2021 to December 2023. Medical records of 124 children aged zero to 15 years admitted with head injuries were reviewed. Data extracted included mechanism of injury, age, sex, Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score at presentation, imaging findings, treatment received, and outcome at discharge. Falls from height were the most common mechanism of injury (48.4%), followed by road traffic accidents (33.9%) and blunt assaults (10.5%). Children aged one to four years were most frequently affected (41.9%). CT scan was performed in only 31.5% of cases due to equipment availability constraints. Moderate to severe head injury (GCS score below 12) was recorded in 38.7% of admissions. Case fatality rate was 8.9%, highest among children with GCS scores below 8. Neurosurgical intervention was required in 14.5% of cases. The study emphasises the need for improved safety measures in domestic environments, road traffic injury prevention strategies, and enhanced neurosurgical capacity at tertiary facilities in north-eastern Nigeria. Keywords: childhood head injuries, epidemiology, Bauchi State, trauma, North East Nigeria.