We studied thirty-four consecutive surviving children who had severe injuries, including a major fracture of at least one extremity or of the pelvic girdle, and at least one other major injury. The severity of the injuries was classified according to the Modified Injury Severity Scale, and that scale proved to be predictive for morbidity and residual impairment. The study showed that in one-third of the patients there was substantial residual impairment that was attributable to their musculoskeletal and neural injuries.
Most of the musculoskeletal impairment was attributable to the nature of the skeletal injury rather than to the treatment.