Fire Arm Weapon Injuries In Karachi In Relation To Mortality & Morbidity An 8-Years Study From 2007 – 2014.

Abstract

Background: Crime on gunpoint has increased in metropolis of Karachi in last many years with increasing mortality & morbidity so what could be done to minimize it and how we can proceed further to make Karachi a peaceful city. The objective of this study is to evaluate whether more firearm laws & associated firm restrictions over the availability of fire arm weapons is required to minimize fire arm fatalities Methods: It is a cross sectional descriptive study for retrospective analysis of all firearm related deaths and injuries, reported to authorized medico –legal sections of Karachi ,located in Civil hospital , Abbasi Shaheed & Jinnah Post Graduate Medical center . The study period is 8 years, extending from 1st January 2007 to 31st December 2014.All medico legal cases & postmortems due to firearm weapons reported and / or sent by police are examined & autopsies done in authorized medico legal sections are included in this study. All cases referred for treatment purposes from outside Karachi are excluded. Results: Total 208241 medico legal cases referred during study period out of which 14.03% (n=27638) cases were identified as firearm weapons injuries. Maximum cases of firearm were reported in Abbasi Shaheed Hospital 37.9% (n= 10478) while minimum cases 29.3% (n=8107) in Civil Hospital Karachi. Postmortems conducted on fire arm weapons deaths were 37.7% (n=4246) in Abbasi Shaheed Hospital Karachi. Male dominated with 91.74% (n=10325) of post mortems over female with 8.26% (n=928) only. Conclusion: The study concluded that homicidal firearm injuries contributed as one of the major cause of death. The age group of 21-25 years was most affected. The most commonly targeted body part was chest & abdomen .The use of fire arm weapons & resultant mortality is increasing day by day. The easy availability of weapons, unemployment, poor socio-economical conditions & the use of youth by Political parties & other criminal groups, for their perverted purposes are main factors behind increased homicidal killings. All these issues are required to be addressed seriously. Key Words: Mortality, Morbidity, Firearm, Post mortem, Medico legal cases.