The Socioeconomic Implications of Isolated Tibial and Femoral Fractures from Road Traffic Injuries in Uganda.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to determine the socioeconomic implications of isolated tibial and femoral fractures caused by road traffic injuries in Uganda. METHODS: This prospective longitudinal study included adult patients who were admitted to Uganda's national referral hospital with an isolated tibial or femoral fracture. The primary outcome was the time to recovery following injury. We assessed recovery using 4 domains: income, employment status, health-related quality of life (HRQoL) recovery, and school attendance of the patients' dependents. RESULTS: The majority of the study participants (83%) were employed, and they were the main income earner for their household (74.0%) at the time of injury, earning a mean annual income of 2,375 U.S. dollars (USD). All of the patients had been admitted with the intention of surgical treatment; however, because of resource constraints, only 56% received operative treatment. By 2 years postinjury, only 63% of the participants had returned to work, and 34% had returned to their previous income level. Overall, the mean monthly income was 62% less than preinjury earnings, and participants had accumulated 1,069 USD in debt since the injury; 41% of the participants had regained HRQoL scores near their baseline, and 62% of school-aged dependents, enrolled at the time of injury, were in school at 2 years postinjury. CONCLUSIONS: At 2 years postinjury, only 12% of our cohort of Ugandan patients who had sustained an isolated tibial or femoral fracture from a road traffic injury had recovered both economically and physically. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Therapeutic Level IV. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.

When Surgical Resources are Severely Constrained, Who Receives Care? Determinants of Access to Orthopaedic Trauma Surgery in Uganda.

BACKGROUND: In low- and middle-income countries, the volume of traumatic injuries requiring orthopaedic intervention routinely exceeds the capacity of available surgical resources. The objective of this study was to identify predictors of surgical care for lower extremity fracture patients at a high-demand, resource-limited public hospital in Uganda. METHODS: Skeletally mature patients admitted with the intention of definitive surgical treatment of an isolated tibia or femur fractures to the national referral hospital in Uganda were recruited to participate in this study. Demographic, socioeconomic, and clinical data were collected through participant interviews at the time of injury and 6 months post-injury. Social capital (use of social networks to gain access to surgery), financial leveraging, and ethnicity were also included as variables in this analysis. A probit estimation model was used to identify independent and interactive predictors of surgical treatment. RESULTS: Of the 64 patients included in the final analysis, the majority of participants were male (83%), with a mean age of 40.6, and were injured in a motor vehicle accident (77%). Due to resource constraints, only 58% of participants received surgical care. The use of social capital and femur fractures were identified as significant predictors of receiving surgical treatment, with social capital emerging as the strongest predictor of access to surgery (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Limited infrastructure, trained personnel, and surgical supplies rations access to surgical care. In this environment, participants with advantageous social connections were able to self-advocate for surgery where demand for these services greatly exceeded available resources.

Economic loss due to traumatic injury in Uganda: The patient's perspective.

INTRODUCTION: Traumatic injury is a growing public health concern globally, and is a major cause of death and disability worldwide. The purpose of this study was to quantify the socioeconomic impact of lower extremity fractures in Uganda. METHODS: All adult patients presenting acutely to Uganda's national referral hospital with a single long bone lower extremity fracture in October 2013 were recruited. Consenting patients were surveyed at admission and again at six-months and 12-months post-injury. The primary outcome was the cumulative 12-month post-injury loss in income. Secondary outcome measures included the change in health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and the injury's effect on school attendance for the patients' dependents. RESULTS: Seventy-four patients were recruited during the study period. Sixty-four (86%) of the patients were available for 12-months of follow-up. Compared to pre-injury earnings, patients lost 88.4% ($1822 USD) of their annual income in the 12-months following their injury. To offset this loss in income, patients borrowed an average of 28% of their pre-injury annual income. Using the EuroQol-5D instrument, the mean HRQoL decreased from 0.91 prior to the injury to 0.39 (p<0.0001) at 12-months post-injury. Ninety-three percent of school-aged dependents missed at least one month of school during their guardian's recovery and only 61% had returned to school by 12-months post-injury. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that lower extremity fractures in Uganda had a profound impact on the socioeconomic status of the individuals in our sample population, as well as the socioeconomic health of the family unit.

Injection-induced sciatic nerve injury in Ugandan children.

In developing countries, sciatic nerve injury following gluteal intramuscular injection is a persistent problem. A study over 6 months involving 133 children seen in Mulago hospital with acute flaccid paralysis revealed 124 (93%) children with injection-induced sciatic nerve injury. The identity of the drug in 79 cases (59.4%) was quinine. It is recommended that the gluteal region should not be used as an intramuscular injection site in children.