Factors Related to Mortality in Occupational Injuries: Five-Year Experience

Abstract

Aim:This study aims to evaluate factors related to mortality in occupational injuries admitted to emergency departments (EDs).Materials and Methods:Patients admitted to the ED because of occupational injuries between January 2015 and December 2019 were retrospectively analyzed. The first admission to the ED following each occupational injury was recorded.Results:Three thousand and two hundred and forty patients included in the study. We observed that occupational injuries decreased with age and were more common in males (91.4%), in agriculture (27.6%) and construction (24.9%) industries, and in summer (29.9%) and spring (28%). Additionally, occupational injuries generally occurred due to falling (31.8%) and caused superficial injuries (39.8%). A majority of patients (83.6%) were discharged from the ED. Three hundred and fifty-one and 156 patients were hospitalized in the surgical clinics and intensive care unit respectively. A total of 25 and 18 patients died in ED and intensive care unit, respectively (total 43 deaths, 1.32%). Moreover, increasing age (p=0.000), construction industry (p=0.008), immigration (p=0.037) and working in night shifts (p=0.009) are independent risk factors related to mortality after occupational injuries.Conclusion:The labor conditions of immigrants as well as of those working at night shifts and in construction industry should be supervised. Their job security should be improved and working without social security should not be allowed.

Keywords

• construction industry
• emergency department
• immigration
• mortality
• night shift
• occupational injuries