Population-based estimates of injuries in Sri Lanka.

BACKGROUND

Injuries are the leading cause of public hospital admission in Sri Lanka. Data on injury epidemiology to plan prevention programmes to reduce injury burden are not readily available.

OBJECTIVES

To assess the incidence of various types of injuries in the Galle district, Sri Lanka.

METHODS

9568 individuals of all ages were selected from 2000 households in a population-based cross-sectional survey using a stratified cluster sampling technique. Data on non-fatal injuries in the last 30 days irrespective of severity, fatal injuries and those that resulted in disability in the last 12 months were documented. Proxy data were used for half of the injury cases.

RESULTS

195 (2%) individuals reported non-fatal injuries during the last 30 days, giving an age-sex-urban-rural adjusted annual incidence of 24.6 per 100 population. The leading causes of non-fatal injuries were falls (adjusted annual incidence 6.7 per 100 population, 95% CI 6.0 to 7.3) and mechanical injuries (6.3; 95% CI 5.7 to 6.8), followed by road traffic injuries (4.9; 95% CI 4.4 to 5.5). 114 (58.5%) individuals needed outpatient care and 50 (25.6%) needed inpatient care for their injuries. The annual injury mortality rate and disability rate were 177 (95% CI 72 to 283) and 290 (95% CI 250 to 330) per 100,000 population, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

Nearly one in four people reported non-fatal injury; the majority sought medical attention in this population. It is important to utilise injury epidemiology to develop and implement interventions to reduce the burden of injuries in the population and on the hospitals in Sri Lanka.