This version was machine-translated from German and has not been medically reviewed. The authoritative version is the German version.

PECARN Pediatric Intra-Abdominal Injury Rule

Seven features after blunt torso trauma – with no feature, very low risk of an intra-abdominal injury requiring intervention

Findings (in descending order of importance)

Signs of abdominal wall trauma or seat belt sign

GCS < 14

abdominal tenderness

Signs of chest wall trauma

Abdominal pain

decreased breath sounds

Vomiting

Calculation aid for healthcare professionals: the calculator reproduces what the sources cited assign to the inputs. Clinical assessment and every treatment decision remain with the treating physician. Inputs and results are not stored.

Found an error or have an idea?

Tell us if something does not work or could be better.

Give feedback

Sources

Identifying children at very low risk of clinically important blunt abdominal injuries (Ann Emerg Med 62:107–116) Holmes JF, Lillis K, Monroe D, et al.; Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network (PECARN), 2013. Original paper
PECARN prediction rule for cervical spine imaging of children presenting to the emergency department with blunt trauma: a multicentre prospective observational study (Lancet Child Adolesc Health 8:482–490) Leonard JC, Harding M, Cook LJ, et al., 2024. Original paper
Factors associated with cervical spine injury in children after blunt trauma (Ann Emerg Med 58:145–155) Leonard JC, Kuppermann N, Olsen C, et al., 2011. Original paper (8 risk factors)

Scientific basis last reviewed: September 2026.

Related calculators

Note

Calculation aid for healthcare professionals. Percentiles and z-scores describe the position of a measured value in the reference population; clinical assessment remains with the treating physician.