Child and Youth Traffic-Related Injuries: Use of a Trauma Registry to Identify Priorities for Prevention in the United Arab Emirates

Abstract

Male drivers and vulnerable road users were at an unusually high risk relative to females. A relatively high frequency of traffic-related head injuries among UAE children and youth, including rear-seat passengers and other vehicle occupants, suggests that considerable preventable morbidity is associated with nonuse of safety restraints and/or other factors such as excess speed and rollovers of 4-wheel drive vehicles. Trauma registries can be useful for prevention; inclusion of data on safety restraints and helmet use by road user type is essential.

The relationship between family socioeconomic condition and childhood injury frequency in selected locations in the Czech Republic

“…The latter author defined poor housing conditions and limited access to CPMs as risk factors. Grivna developed a strategy for injury prevention in the Czech Republic based on the WHO concept [24,25]. Benešová emphasized the need to strengthen general injury prevention, particularly promotion of CPMs and prevention focused on children in higher risk groups [26].…”

Pediatric and Youth Traffic-Collision Injuries in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates: A Prospective Study

“…A prospective hospital based study can assess more severe pediatric injuries. We have previously reported the high frequency of traffic-related head injury among UAE children and youth and suggested that the use of safety restraints was low although these specific data were not available in that study [8]. Hospitalized trauma patients in Al Ain are exclusively admitted to two hospitals.…”

Head Trauma–Related Deaths Among Preschool Children in Istanbul, Turkey

“…A review of the literature revealed that a great number of studies reported traffic accident as the most common cause of head trauma-related childhood 3,4,6,[21][22][23][24] whereas similar to our findings, some other studies found traffic accident as the second most common cause of head trauma-related childhood deaths. 7,13,25 Of a total of 67 cases involving traffic accident, 40 (60%) were males and 27 (40%) were females, and victims were mostly in 13-to 36-month-age group with 32 cases (48%), in the present study. In accordance to this, 2 studies from Africa and Norway revealed similar numbers and percentages of males (51, 56%) and females (40, 44%).…”

“…In accordance to our findings, studies conducted in India and United Arab Emirates also reported fall from a height as the most common cause of head trauma-related fatalities. 7,13 It took the third place among deaths of children aged between 1 and 4 years in Chicago; however, a study conducted in Ohio between 1994 and 1996 showed that fall from a height was the fourth most common among causes of death in same age group. 6 Fall from a height contributes mortality rates; furthermore, this contribution is significant in children younger than 5 years, in particular.…”

“…However, a 4-year study from United Arab Emirates reported fall from a height as the most common cause of head trauma-related deaths in the same age group. 7 On the other hand, in a 20-year study by John et al 8 presenting 126 accidental head trauma-related childhood deaths, causes of deaths were traffic accidents (70%), fall from a height (9%), and blunt trauma (4%).…”