Epidemiology of traumatic injuries presenting to an ED in Central Haiti: a retrospective cohort study.
Emerg Med J
; 36(7): 389-394, 2019 Jul.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-30877264
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
In Haiti, like many low-income countries, traumatic injuries are leading causes of morbidity and mortality. Yet, little is known about the epidemiology of traumatic injuries in Haitian EDs. Improved understanding of injury patterns is necessary to strengthen emergency services and improve emergency provider education.METHODS:
This was a retrospective cohort study of trauma patients at an academic hospital in central Haiti over 6 months. Visits were identified from the electronic medical record, and paper charts were manually reviewed. Data, including demographics, timing of presentation, injuries sustained, treatments received and ED disposition were extracted using a standardised form and later analysed in SAS V.9.3.RESULTS:
Of 1401 patients, 66% were male, and the average age was 26.8 years. Most visits were due to road traffic injuries (RTIs; 48%) followed by falls (22%). Trauma mechanism varied significantly by age (p<0.001) falls predominated in children under 5 years (56%) versus RTIs for adults (59%). Only 14% of patients injured on motorcycles used helmets and 30% of those injured in motor vehicles used seatbelts. Only 18% of patients arrived within 1 hour of the trauma. Skin or soft tissue injuries were the most common (58%), followed by extremity or pelvic fractures or dislocations (23%). Most patients (81%) were discharged, 14% were admitted or stayed over 24 hours in the ED and 0.8% died in the ED. Of the admitted patients, 61% had surgery, 79% of which were orthopaedic. Patients using helmets or seatbelts were more likely to be discharged than those not using protective equipment (p=0.008).CONCLUSIONS:
In this trauma population, RTIs and falls were the most common trauma mechanisms, safety feature use was rare, and most injuries were musculoskeletal. Presentation was delayed and mortality was low, but many patients required surgery. These findings have significant clinical, public health, operational and training implications.Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Ferimentos e Lesões
Tipo de estudo:
Etiology_studies
/
Incidence_studies
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Observational_studies
/
Prognostic_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
/
Screening_studies
Limite:
Adolescent
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Adult
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Child
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Child, preschool
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Female
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Humans
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Infant
/
Male
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Middle aged
País/Região como assunto:
Caribe
/
Haiti
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Emerg Med J
Assunto da revista:
MEDICINA DE EMERGENCIA
Ano de publicação:
2019
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Estados Unidos