A community-based study of injuries leading to death of children in the suez Canal area, egypt

Waheeb Y1, El-Sayed H2, El-Shishy S1, Abdel-Hamid M3

Departments of Community Medicine1, Pediatrics2, and Orthopedics3

 

Objectives: To determine the magnitude and the specific causes of injury deaths in comparison to other causes of death during childhood.

Methods: A geographically stratified cluster sample of the study population, which consisted of 25 clusters, each including 40 households. Data were collected from 982 households on past deaths of children. Results: Collected data showed that 412 deaths occurred in the selected households in the three governorates. Injuries constituted 9% of all the deaths. Injury deaths increased gradually with the child’s age, from 2% in the first year of life, to more than half the deaths at the age group (15-18 years). Motor vehicle injuries and drowning were the most common causes of injury deaths, each causing 29% of the deaths. Followed by burns and mine explosions each causing 10% of deaths, while poisoning and falls each caused 5% of injury deaths. Injury deaths as a proportion of all deaths were not significantly different between males and females, or between the different study governorates.    

Conclusion: Injuries became one of the leading causes of death in childhood after the first year of life. With the successful efforts in the control of infectious diseases, injury is expected to take the lead as a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in childhood in the near future. Therefore, there is increasing need for a national program for the control of injuries in the country. We recommend the establishment of National Safety Council to plan for injury control program in Egypt, and to improve injury registration system in health care facilities.

 
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