Abstract
Objective:
To analyze factors associated with mortality from traumatic injuries among motorcyclists.
Methods:
This was a prospective cohort conducted at the Municipal Hospital of São José dos Campos, Brazil, in 2015. Motorcyclists with traumatic injuries, ≥14 years old and hospitalized were included. Sociodemographic, accident and hospitalization variables were analyzed by applying a Poisson regression model showing relative risk (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI).
Results:
Among 190 motorcyclists, 161 (84.7%) young men were found to have 422 (41.8%) injuries to the lower and upper extremities. Incidence of death increased as physiological injury severity (RR=9.67 [95%CI 1.46;64.26] and RR=4.71 [95%CI 1.36;16.26]), and anatomical injury severity (RR=31.49 [95%CI 3.72;266.38]) increased, but was lower within up to one week of hospitalization (RR=0.39 [95%CI 0.15;0.98]).
Conclusion:
Injury severity and length of hospital stay were associated with motorcyclist deaths. Further studies should be conducted to confirm these findings and to analyze the relationships in greater detail.
Keywords:
Accidents, Traffic; Motorcycles; Injury Severity Score; Mortality; Cohort Studies