title: Traumatic injuries in developing countries: report from a nationwide cross-sectional survey of Sierra Leone.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To use a nationwide household survey tool to provide an estimate of injury prevalence, mechanisms of traumatic injuries, and number of injury-related deaths in a low-income country.
  
  
  METHODS
  A randomized, cross-sectional nationwide survey using the Surgeons OverSeas Assessment of Surgical Need tool was conducted in 2012.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sierra Leone, Africa.
  
  
  METHODS
  Three thousand seven hundred fifty randomly selected participants throughout Sierra Leone.
  
  
  METHODS
  Mechanisms of injury based on age, sex, anatomic location, cause, and sociodemographic factors as well as mechanisms of injury-related deaths in the previous year were the primary outcome measures.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Data were collected and analyzed from 1843 households and 3645 respondents (98% response rate). Four hundred fifty-two respondents (12%) reported at least 1 traumatic injury in the preceding year. Falls were the most common cause of nonfatal injuries (40%). The extremities were the most common injury site regardless of age or sex. Traffic injuries were the leading cause of injury-related deaths (32% of fatal injuries).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study provides baseline data on the mechanisms of traumatic injuries as well as the sociodemographic factors affecting injury prevalence in one of the world's poorest nations. It is anticipated that these data will provide an impetus for further studies to determine injury severity, associated disability, and barriers to accessing care in these resource-poor areas.
authors: Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA.
authors: Kerry-Ann A
authors: KA
authors: Stewart
authors: Reinou S
authors: RS
authors: Groen
authors: Thaim B
authors: TB
authors: Kamara
authors: Mina M
authors: MM
authors: Farahzad
authors: Mohamed
authors: M
authors: Samai
authors: Laura D
authors: LD
authors: Cassidy
authors: Adam L
authors: AL
authors: Kushner
authors: Sherry M
authors: SM
authors: Wren
mesh_terms: D000059:Accidents / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003906:Developing Countries; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020380:Needs Assessment; D012807:Sierra Leone / Q000453:epidemiology; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy; D055815:Young Adult