Epidemiological and clinical characteristics of trauma patients: The first report from a center in Yazd affiliated with the National Trauma Registry of Iran

Abstract

Background: According to the reports, the road traffic injuries (RTI) mortality rate in Iran as a middle-income country in the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR) decreased in past decades but is higher than the global level and remained a health problem.Objectives: This study aimed to report the characteristics of registered patients injured by different trauma mechanisms in Yazd City, Iran.Methods: In this study, the patients were registered from September 28, 2016, to December 31, 2022, at Shahid Rahnamoon Hospital, affiliated with the National Trauma Registry of Iran (NTRI) for its first phase. Inclusion criteria were hospital length of stay (LOS) of more than 24 hours, death due to injury in the hospital, or transfer from other hospitals' intensive care units (ICU). Age, gender, Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), systolic blood pressure (SBP), cause of injury, LOS, injury severity score (ISS), and in-hospital mortality were assessed.Results: Among 3960 participants, 2307 (58.2%) patients were injured due to RTI as the most common cause of injury. Also, 949 (23.9%) and 359 (9.1%) of the participants experienced fall and stab/cut injuries, respectively. Men were affected more than women in all injury causes (p<0.001). In those with RTI, multiple trauma (55.3%) was the most prevalent event, and then extremities (23.5%) were the most body regions injured (p<0.001). Also, in people who fell, trauma to the extremities (35.4%) was higher than in other regions (p<0.001). According to the adjusted logistic regression model, being ≥65 years old has a 1.9 times higher chance of ICU admission compared to being<18 years old. Also, having ISS≥9, having GCS≤12, and having trauma to the head/neck/face, abdomen, spine and multiple trauma had a statistically significant association with the chance of ICU admission with odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of 3.89 (2.49-6.08), 22.26 (10.54-47.02), 2.55 (1.33-4.88), and 4.40 (3.00-6.47), respectively.Conclusion: Data from the first phase of the only trauma registry center in Yazd province showed that RTI was the most common cause of injury, which was more prevalent among men. People aged 18 to 64 were significantly more affected by all injury causes. After multiple trauma, RTIs and fall injuries were mainly involved in the head and extremities. People must be warned against the potential risks and complications of trauma, especially RTI, more than before.

Keywords

• trauma
• injuries
• epidemiology
• injury severity score
• road traffic injury