Abstract
BackgroundMusculoskeletal [MSK] injuries are common causes of long-term pain and physical disability which affect many people worldwide. The economic and social impacts on the individual, society and national health systems are enormous making a matter of public health concern. Therefore, this study examined the causes and extent of MSK injuries in a referral hospital in Ghana.MethodsA prospective study design with consecutive sampling method was used to recruit patients admitted at Trauma Unit as well as those receiving orthopaedic reviews at St. Joseph’s Orthopaedic Hospital over a ten-month period. A structured questionnaire, Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) were used to collect data which were analysed descriptively using SPSS version 20.ResultsA total of 269 MSK injury patients were identified - of these, 137 (50.9%) males with an average age of 38 years (SD = 19.88). Nearly half (49.1%) of the injuries sustained were fractures, and common causes were vehicular crash 113 (42.0%) and fall 68 (25.3%). Body parts affected most were the knee (19.62) and the mean levels of pain for all injuries were 6.04 ± 2.44 and 3.25 (±1.50) respectively.ConclusionGhana needs a healthy population to steer its development trajectory. Policy makers in Ghana should pay attention to both preventive as well as management of MSK injuries, or else, most of the country’s working class could live with lasting effects of injuries which may have significant impacts on the economy.
Highlights
Musculoskeletal [MSK] injuries are common causes of long-term pain and physical disability which affect many people worldwide
According to the World Health Organization [WHO] in 2000, various kinds of injuries resulted in the death of 5.1 million people and accounted for 12% of the disability-adjusted life years (DALYS) worldwide which is expected to increase to 20% by the year 2020 [3,4,5]
Arthritis and dislocation were the major conditions seen across age groups among the study participants
Summary
Musculoskeletal [MSK] injuries are common causes of long-term pain and physical disability which affect many people worldwide. Musculoskeletal [MSK] injuries are the commonest causes of severe long-term pain and physical disability affecting hundreds of millions of people around the world [1]. One-third of all health-related absence from work in developed countries are attributed to MSK conditions - a situation which is likely to be double in LMICs where a huge number of people suffer from non-fatalities every day [5]. This reinforces the need for attention to be given to trends in MSK injuries in LMICs where there seems to be numerous problems facing the healthcare system. Having baseline information on the prevalence of MSK injury could enable policy makers to channel resources in both prevention and intervention
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