Abusive Head Injuries Among Arizona Infants and Young Children

Abusive head injury fatalities were identified in Arizona’s Child Fatality Review annual reports. Non-fatal hospitalizations and emergency department visits due to abusive head injuries (shaken infant or shaken impact syndrome) were identified using methods from a study conducted in 2005. Infants and children under the age of two years with a code for shaken infant syndrome in any diagnostic fields were included. Additionally, cases with a diagnostic code for skull fracture or intracranial injury, retinal hemorrhage, or intracranial hemorrhage with an external cause of injury code for known or suspected homicide/assault were included.