Morbidity and Mortality of Firearm Injury at A Tertiary Care Hospital in Lahore
Keywords:
Firearm injury, homicide, entry wound, exit wound, internal injuries, morbidity, mortalityAbstract
Background: Throughout the world violent crimes due to firearm weapons have increased tremendously which are destabilizing political, social, and economic systems, and causing increase in morbidity and mortality.
Objective: The aim of the study was to determine the pattern of firearm injuries and to assess their outcome at a tertiary care hospital in Lahore.
Materials and Methods: This retrospective study was conducted in Surgical Unit- IV of Services hospital, Lahore from January2011 to December 2013. Data was collected regarding age, gender, date of incident, manner of infliction of injuries, site of external and internal injuries, number of wounds and outcome. It was tabulated and statistically analyzed on SPSS version17.
Results: Total number of cases of firearm injury was 150 with male to female ratio 11.5 : 1. Commonest age group affected was third decade(52, 34.6%). The most commmonly involved body region was abdomen (54, 36%). The incidence of homicidal cases was 99% while that of accidental was 1% . No suicidal cases were reported. 56% sustained internal injuries with small bowel (50.9%) and liver (16.9%) most frequently injured in abdomen and lungs (71.4%) extra abdominally. The overall mortality rate was 5.3%.
Conclusion: Firearms and their use are modifiable risk factors which if recognized and addressed can significantly reduce the firearm related morbidity and mortality in the country.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
The Journal of Fatima Jinnah Medical University follows the Attribution Creative Commons-Non commercial (CC BY-NC) license which allows the users to copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format, remix, transform and build upon the material. The users must give credit to the source and indicate, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. However, the CC By-NC license restricts the use of material for commercial purposes. For further details about the license please check the Creative Commons website. The editorial board of JFJMU strives hard for the authenticity and accuracy of the material published in the journal. However, findings and statements are views of the authors and do not necessarily represent views of the Editorial Board.