Epidemiology And Pattern Of Orthopaedic Trauma In Patients Admitted To The Surgical Ward Of A Regional Hospital

Abstract

Background: Orthopaedic trauma related injuries have not been extensively studied in Sub-Saharan Africa. Increase in industrialization and motorization in these countries have seen a corresponding increase in injuries. The causes of these injuries may vary slightly from one geographic region to another. Knowing the circumstances under which these injuries occur affords policy makers the opportunity to put in place the necessary preventive measures Objectives: To describe the epidemiological characteristics and cause of orthopaedic related trauma injuries in patients admitted to the surgical ward of Greater Accra Regional Hospital Methods: Patients admitted to the surgical ward with orthopaedic trauma related injuries between May 2016 and October 2017 were retrospectively reviewedResults: A total of 253 trauma related injuries were admitted to the surgical ward with an average age of 45.2 years and a male to female ratio of 2.3:1. Road Traffic Accidents (RTA) accounted for 49.2% of all trauma related admissions, with motorcycle relatedaccidents accounting for 52.8% of all RTAs. The second most frequent cause of trauma related admission was falls, representing 29.9 %. Two hundred and thirteen patients (84.2%) were admitted with fractures. Seventyeight percent of the patients with fractures weremanaged operatively. The overall in-ward crude mortality was 1.98%Conclusions: The findings from this study points to the fact that RTAs, (especially motorcycle related injuries) and falls, account for the majority of trauma related admissions. Fractures account for the majority of injuries sustained, with a significant proportion beingmanaged operatively.