Frequency, characteristics and hospital outcomes of road traffic accidents and their victims in Guinea: a three-year retrospective study from 2015 to 2017

Abstract

Background Road traffic accidents (RTA) remain a global public health concern in developing countries. The aim of the study was to document the frequency, characteristics and hospital outcomes of road traffic accidents in Guinea from 2015 to 2017. Methods We conducted a retrospective cohort study using medical records of RTA victims from 20 hospitals and a cross-sectional study of RTA cases from eight police stations in eight districts in Guinea, West Africa. Data analysis included descriptive statistics, trends of RTA, a sequence of interrupted time-series models and a segmented ordinary least-squares (OLS) regression. Results Police stations recorded 3,140 RTA over 3 years with an overall annual increase in RTA rates from 14.0 per 100,000 population in 2015, to 19.2 per 100,000 population in 2016 (37.1% annual increase), to 28.7 per 100,000 population in 2017 (49.5% annual increase). Overall, the injury rates in 2016 and 2017 were .05 per 100,000 population higher on average per month (95% CI: .03–.07). Deaths from RTA showed no statistical differences over the 3 years and no association of RTA trends with season was found. Overall, 27,751 RTA victims were admitted to emergency units, representing 22% of all hospitals admissions. Most victims were males (71%) and young (33%). Deaths represented 1.4% of all RTA victims. 90% of deaths occurred before or within 24 h of hospital admission. Factors associated with death were being male ( p = .04), being a child under 15 years ( p = .045) or an elderly person aged ≥65 years ( p < .001), and having head injury or coma ( p < .001). Conclusions RTA rates in Guinea are increasing. There is a need for implementing multisectoral RTA prevention measures in Guinea.

Characteristics of pediatric injuries due to road traffic accidents and their effects on mortality

“…Death risk related to a low GCS has gradually increased, and 54% of those in a severe or deep coma died in the hospital. Most of the patients had a normal GCS, but 1.9% of all RTA victims were in severe or deep coma in our study, consistent with the literature [23].…”

“…In a study conducted from July 2005 through July 2017, the most frequently injured body regions in RTA patients included lower extremities, chest, upper extremities, head, and spine [16]. In a study by Kourouma et al [23], 86% of the patients were treated in the emergency department without being admitted to the hospital services. The predominant injury included soft tissue and fractures in about 10% of the patients, mainly in the extremities.…”

Motorcycle Accidents and Their Outcomes amongst Victims Admitted to Health Facilities in Guinea: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…Multicolliniarity was checked first, and then a final logistic model was fitted using the stepwise approach. e candidate variables for inclusion in the model were those identified in the literature [13,[17][18][19][20].…”

“…In Guinea, the RTA rate has been rising consistently each year and motorcycle involvement in RTA has tripled over a three year period [13]. Contributing factors for increasing motorcycle-related RTA include a lack of public transportation and poor quality of roads and vehicles.…”

Determinants of Prolonged Length of Stay among Patients with Road Traffic Injury at the Philippine General Hospital: A Retrospective Cohort Study

“…The American College of Surgeons defined a GCS score of 13-15 as mild head injury; 9-12 as moderate head injury, and 8 and below as severe head injury. For this study, GCS scores were classified as high (13)(14)(15) or low (12 and below) for the descriptive analysis, but numerical GCS scores were considered for the inferential statistics.…”