Vehicular accidents , leading cause of injuries - DOH

The Department of Health(DOH) today revealed that a total of 3,077 vehicular accident-related injuries were reported for the first quarter of 2010 by its National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS).

The NEISS report said that there were 9,521 injury cases reported in 77 government and private hospitals. Injuries often (24.9%) occurred between 4:00PM and 7:59PM. The leading external causes of  injuries were vehicular accidents (32.32%), mauling (18.45%), sharp objects (11.87%), falls (11.71%), bites/stings (5.46%), and burns (1.26%).

According to the report, the most common injuries were open wound/lacerations (40.1%), abrasion (35.3%), and contusion (17%). More than half (55%) of the total reported injury cases belonged to the 15-44 years age group. Children less than 5 years old and the elderly aged 65 years and above accounted for 7% and 3%, respectively.

The highest number of injuries was recorded in Central Luzon (34.1%), followed by Davao Region (13.5%). Majority (99.68%) of those sustaining injuries were Filipinos. Other nationalities include Chinese, Canadian, Indian, and South Korean.

Collision accidents accounted for 41.2% of the cases. Almost half (45.1%) of the total vehicular accident-related injuries occurred in Central Luzon. Nearly two-thirds (61.5%) happened between 8:00AM and 7:59PM.  There were more males (76%) than females (24%) involved in vehicular accidents.

The motorcycle was the most common (55.4%) mode of transport of the injured, while 15.1% were occupants of jeepney, cargo trucks, and other means of transportation. The primary reported risk factor for vehicular accident-related injuries was drunk driving (20.2%).

Majority (99%) of those injured due to vehicular accidents reached the hospital alive, while 66% of those reported dead upon arrival were motorcycle occupants. Nearly three-fourths (73.9%) of injury cases were discharged after treatment, while 9.4% were admitted for further treatment.

Most injuries occur on the road (44.4%) and at home (22.9%).  Some injuries were leisure-related (20.2%) and 7.8% were work-related. About 17.8% of registered injuries have unknown place of occurrence.

In order to prevent injuries and deaths, the DOH recommends the use of safety helmets for motorcycle riders, to refrain from driving when under the influence of liquor/alcoholic beverages, and to strictly comply with existing traffic rules and regulations. Also, the DOH is urging lawmakers to hasten the passing of legislation on drunk driving and use of safety helmets for motorcycle riders.

Established in 2007, the NEISS aimed to capture injury-related data from health facilities and facilitate its collection, management, transmission, analysis, access, dissemination and sharing. The said project started with only 65 hospitals and was expanded to other DOH and private hospitals.