ali shoush

Road accidents are the main cause of injuries and the most important causes of  disability and death worldwide. Traffic accidents are the eighth cause of death in the world and the first cause of death in the ages of 15-29 years. Approximately, a quarter of the world’s road deaths occur among motorcyclists. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess the consequences of traffic accidents leading to injuries and hospitalization in motorcyclists of Dezful in 2018.

In this descriptive cross-sectional study, the hospital records of injured motorcyclists in Ganjavian Hospital in 2018 were reviewed. The information in the files were collected and analyzed through a researcher-made checklist containing demographic information and the consequences of incidents.

The results showed that the mean age of the subjects was 29.24±16.10 years. The most trauma was to the head and neck (31.8%) and then the lower extremity (30.09%). The orthopedic surgery with 80.8% and screw andplates as its surgical tools with 59.6% had the highest rank.

According to the pattern of consequences of traffic accidents, if politicians pay attention to the prevention of traffic accidents, especially in the age group of adolescents and young people, the workload of specialists can be reduced and by using the vital capacity of hospitals for other necessary cases.

 Although there are no exact statistics on the number of motorcycles in Iran, apparently due to the danger and increasing use of motorcycles, the incidence of motorcycle-related traffic accidents in Iran is rapidly increasing. Therefore, the present study aims to determine the epidemiological status of accidents leading to death in motorcyclists in Dezful, Iran.

 The present study was a descriptive-analytical and cross-sectional study that was conducted in 2021. The statistical population included the deaths due to motorcycle traffic accidents, whose burial certificates were issued by the office of legal medicine in Dezful. The samples were selected as a census from legal medicine statistics during the years 2015-2018. The data were confidentially entered into a researcher-made checklist without mentioning the name of the deceased and then analyzed using SPSS 24.

The highest number of victims was under 30 years old and the lowest number was 40-50. The cause of death was due to head injuries (63.8 percent), multiple trauma (26.2 percent), bleeding (5.7 percent), and other reasons (4.3 percent). Most of the deaths were related to men and due to traffic accidents that occurred in September, October, and November months. Also, 50.4 percent of the accidents occurred in the city and 49.6 percent on suburban roads.

 Most of the traffic accidents among motorcyclists are related to the youth age group. Therefore, it is imperative to pay attention to this group in order to reduce casualties. Therefore, appropriate traffic culture should be promoted and measures should be taken to reduce the occurrence of accidents by strictly enacting and enforcing the laws.