OBJECTIVETo explore the characteristics of violence events occurred at the Emergency Department in the hospital and to provide evidence for prevention and control of the problem.

METHODSSurveillance on injuries was performed on those patients who first visited the Emergency Department in a general hospital in Shantou from January 1st 2000 to December 31th 2002.

RESULTSA total number of 11 472 injured patients registered in a 3-year surveillance program at the Emergency Department. Among the patients under surveillance, 29.0% of them were injured by violence events. The ratio of male to female was 3.8:1. The high risk age groups of violence patients were 15 - 44 years (77.1%) with workers as the majority. Home was the most common place for suicide/self-hurt (occupied 42.2%), and highway seemed to be the most common place for homicide/be injured (occupied 44.7%) to occur. Pre-hospital care for the injured patients was mostly taken care by other people (80.1%). Opening trauma appeared to be the most common injury caused by the violence.

CONCLUSIONOur study on violence surveillance program at the Emergency Department provided information for identifying the main problems and population at high risk. Violence surveillance in the emergency department of different areas needs to be carried out in order to take preventive measures accordingly.

Age Factors ; China ; epidemiology ; Emergencies ; epidemiology ; Humans ; Occupations ; Population Surveillance ; Sex Factors ; Time Factors ; Violence ; classification ; statistics & numerical data ; Wounds and Injuries ; classification ; epidemiology ; etiology

OBJECTIVES: This study was performed to provide the basic data for establishing countermeasures for preventing injury by analyzing the incidence rates, the risk factors, the characteristics of the injury and the utilization of medical care for mild injury that lasted for two weeks. METHODS: We examined the injury survey data among the National Health and Nutrition Survey data. The definition of mild injury that lasted for two weeks was that the injury that caused pain at least once a day for two weeks or the injury for which the usual daily activity of the injured person was severely affected. We used statistical analysis methods such as chi-square test and multiple logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: The incidence rate of injury that lasted for two weeks was 4.7 per 1,000 persons. On the multiple logistic regression, the children and adolescents (OR=3.80, 95%CI=1.63-8.84) had higher rates of injuries than the adults, and the middle and high school (OR=0.51, 95%CI=0.31-0.85) and college(OR=0.34, 95%CI=0.17-0.68) students had lower rates of injuries than the elementary school students. The unemployed (OR=0.39, 95%CI=0.20-0.73) and others (OR=0.38, 95%CI=0.21-0.70) had lower rates of injuries than the blue collar workers. The major causes of injuries were found to be falling and slipping, and the most prevalent place of occurrence was near or at home. CONCLUSIONS: A prevention program needs to be developed and continuous education must be offered to the children, adolescents and blue collar workers.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Child ; Female ; Humans ; Incidence ; Korea/epidemiology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; *Nutrition Surveys ; Risk Factors ; Trauma Severity Indices ; Wounds and Injuries/classification/*epidemiology

OBJECTIVES: This study was conducted to estimate the cumulative incidence rate (CIR) of unintentional injuries in Korean daily life and to describe the pattern of unintentional injuries. METHODS: The study population was the people who used the National Health Insurance because of injuries (ICD code: S00~T98) during 2006. The stratified sample according to gender, age and the severity of injury (NISS, New Injury Severity Score) was randomly selected. The questions on the questionnaire were developed as a reference for an international classification tool (ICECI, International Classification of External Causes of Injury). The questions included the locations of injury, the mechanisms of injury and the results of injury. Moreover, we used age, gender, region and income variables for analysis. RESULTS: The CIR of unintentional injuries that occurred in daily life for 1 year per 100,000 persons was 17,606, and the CIR of severe injuries was 286. Many injuries were occurred at home (29.6%), public places (19.0%), school (13.7%) and near home (12.0%). The major mechanisms of injuries were slipping (48.8%), contact (14.0%), physical over-exertion (13.8%), and fall (6.6%). Infants and old aged people were vulnerable to injuries, and those who lived rural area and who were in a low income level were vulnerable too. CONCLUSIONS: We signified the risk groups and risk settings of unintentional injuries in Korean daily life. These results could contribute to establishing strategies for injury prevention and implementing these strategies.
Accidents/*statistics & numerical data ; Adolescent ; Adult ; Age Factors ; Aged ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Korea/epidemiology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Residence Characteristics ; Sex Factors ; Socioeconomic Factors ; Trauma Severity Indices ; Wounds and Injuries/classification/*epidemiology

OBJECTIVE: To determine the association between drinking patterns (the volume of drinking and frequency) and injury type (intentional injury and unintentional traffic injury).
 METHODS: A total of 1 539 patients (age≥18 years), who were treated for the first time in the emergency room within 6 h after the injury, were included. The American National Institute of Health questionnaire was used to investigate the injury type, time point of drinking, drinking volume, and drinking history in the past years and so on. The case-crossover method and logistic regression was used to analyze the data.
 RESULTS: Comparing with the control, people with alcohol consuming 6 h before the injury showed a higher risk of intentional injury (OR=3.63). Comparing with people without drinking in the past year, subjects who drank alcohol more than once in the past year displayed a higher risk of intentional injury (OR=1.986). Comparing with non-drinkers, subjects who drank alcohol 5-11 standard drinks or 12 and more drinks on one occasion in the past year had a higher risk of intentional injury (OR=1.854 or 1.572). Comparing with the non-drinkers, victims who drank alcohol 6 h before injury had a higher risk of unintentional traffic injury (OR=2.091). Comparing with non-drinkers in the past year, subjects who drank alcohol more than once in the past year had a higher risk of unintentional traffic injuries (OR=1.533). Comparing with the non-drinkers, subjects who drank alcohol 6 h before injury had a higher risk of injury (OR=5.15). Subjects who drank Less than 6 standard drinks, 6-9 standard drinks and more than 9 standard drinks of alcohol 6 h separately before injury had higher risk than non-drinkers (OR=3.83, 8.64 or 9.58). 
 CONCLUSION Drinking alcohol before injury is associated with higher risk of intentional injury and unintentional traffic injury. Over the past year, subjects who drank alcohol at least once have higher risk of intentional injuries and unintentional traffic injury. Drinking alcohol 6 h before injury is associated with higher risk of injuries. The risk is increasing with the volume of drinking before injury. The study demonstrates that drinking 6 h before injury and drinking patterns in the past year are closely associated with injuries, which provides scientific evidences for making policy relevant to alcohol consuming.
Accidents, Traffic ; statistics & numerical data ; Adult ; Alcohol Drinking ; adverse effects ; epidemiology ; Cross-Over Studies ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; statistics & numerical data ; Female ; Hospitals, General ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Time Factors ; Wounds and Injuries ; classification ; epidemiology

INTRODUCTIONThis retrospective pilot study provides information on trauma admissions to the Surgical Intensive Care Unit (SICU) of a tertiary hospital in Singapore. The aim was to use the data collected to generate awareness and interest in this area. The authors also wish to use the information to advocate subsequent in-depth collection and analysis of data and the development of a Trauma Registry. As this was a pilot study, the data collected were by no means exhaustive and only descriptive analysis was applied.

MATERIALS AND METHODSTrauma admissions to the SICU for the period between January 2001 and December 2005 were identified from the admissions logbook maintained in the unit. The physical case-notes or electronic-records for the identified cases were retrieved and the relevant data and parameters were entered into the data collection sheet. Descriptive analysis was applied to the data collected.

RESULTSA total of 503 cases over the 5-year period fulfilled our criteria. Motor vehicle accidents were the greatest contributor of trauma admissions to the SICU (53%). The length of stay (LOS) in the unit ranged from 1 to 59 days. The anatomical area most frequently injured was the head (68%). Out of the 132 mortalities, male patients accounted for 84%. Two-thirds (67%) of injury-related mortality occurred in young patients aged less than 45 years. Motor vehicle accidents accounted for nearly half (47%) of injury-related mortality. Motorcyclists accounted for almost half (46%) of motor vehicle accident deaths.

CONCLUSIONThe preponderance of young people involved in motor vehicle accidents with head injuries has a large impact on society and on the hospital workload. The authors hope that this pilot study will generate awareness and interest in the area of trauma injuries. They recommend that a nationwide trauma registry be established to look closer into this "disease", as other developed countries have done.

Accidents, Traffic ; statistics & numerical data ; Adolescent ; Adult ; Age Distribution ; Aged ; Craniocerebral Trauma ; epidemiology ; Critical Care ; statistics & numerical data ; Female ; Humans ; Incidence ; Length of Stay ; statistics & numerical data ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Patient Admission ; statistics & numerical data ; Retrospective Studies ; Sex Distribution ; Singapore ; epidemiology ; Wounds and Injuries ; classification ; mortality ; Young Adult

PURPOSE: The mortality rate for severely injured patients with the injury severity score (ISS) ≥16 has decreased in Germany. There is robust evidence that mortality is influenced not only by the acute trauma itself but also by physical health, age and sex. The aim of this study was to identify other possible influences on the mortality of severely injured patients. METHODS: In a matched-pair analysis of data from Trauma Register DGU®, non-surviving patients from Germany between 2009 and 2014 with an ISS≥16 were compared with surviving matching partners. Matching was performed on the basis of age, sex, physical health, injury pattern, trauma mechanism, conscious state at the scene of the accident based on the Glasgow coma scale, and the presence of shock on arrival at the emergency room. RESULTS: We matched two homogeneous groups, each of which consisted of 657 patients (535 male, average age 37 years). There was no significant difference in the vital parameters at the scene of the accident, the length of the pre-hospital phase, the type of transport (ground or air), pre-hospital fluid management and amounts, ISS, initial care level, the length of the emergency room stay, the care received at night or from on-call personnel during the weekend, the use of abdominal sonographic imaging, the type of X-ray imaging used, and the percentage of patients who developed sepsis. We found a significant difference in the new injury severity score, the frequency of multi-organ failure, hemoglobine at admission, base excess and international normalized ratio in the emergency room, the type of accident (fall or road traffic accident), the pre-hospital intubation rate, reanimation, in-hospital fluid management, the frequency of transfusion, tomography (whole-body computed tomography), and the necessity of emergency intervention. CONCLUSION Previously postulated factors such as the level of care and the length of the emergency room stay did not appear to have a significant influence in this study. Further studies should be conducted to analyse the identified factors with a view to optimising the treatment of severely injured patients. Our study shows that there are significant factors that can predict or influence the mortality of severely injured patients.
Accidents ; classification ; Adult ; Age Factors ; Blood Transfusion ; Data Analysis ; Emergency Medical Services ; Female ; Fluid Therapy ; Germany ; epidemiology ; Hemoglobins ; Humans ; International Normalized Ratio ; Intubation ; statistics & numerical data ; Male ; Matched-Pair Analysis ; Multiple Organ Failure ; Registries ; Sex Factors ; Survival Rate ; Trauma Severity Indices ; Wounds and Injuries ; mortality