Incidence and pattern of road traffic injuries in tribal population of Jharkhand: One-year study in a tertiary care teaching hospital.

BACKGROUND AND AIM

Road traffic injuries (RTIs) are a leading cause of mortality and morbidity globally. This study aimed to assess the incidence and pattern of RTIs in the tribal population of Jharkhand.

METHODS AND MATERIALS

This prospective observational study was conducted for a period of 1 year (June 2018 to May 2019) at the Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences, Ranchi, Jharkhand. A pretested semi-structured questionnaire was administered. A total of 1713 road traffic accident (RTA) victims belonging to tribal population were interviewed during the study period. Data were entered in a Microsoft Excel sheet and analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 16.

RESULTS

There were 1258 (73.4%) males and 455 (26.6%) females. The majority (31.4%) of patients belonged to the age group of 21-30 years, followed by 19.2% in the age group of 31-40 years. The majority (52.13%) of RTAs involved a two-wheeler vehicle. Head injury was the most common type of injury (40.86%), followed by lower limb injury (26.68%). Common upper limb injuries were in the humerus and radius and ulna region. The majority of lower limb injuries involved tibia and femur. Common thoracic-abdomen injuries were soft tissue injury and lung contusion. Drunk driving (alcohol influence) was seen in 34.68% of cases of RTI.

CONCLUSIONS

RTA is a major public health problem which needs to accelerate the efforts of road safety preventive measures. Road safety education should be promoted.