Hospital Mortality in Trauma Patients

Abstract

Introduction: The study of mortality in a community makes it possible to define the axes of disease prevention and to readjust public health policies. The achieve of our study was to assess hospital mortality in trauma patients in an orthopedic department of a teaching hospital in sub-Saharan Africa. Patients and Method: We conducted a retrospective prognostic study evaluating hospital mortality during the period from March 1, 2013 to February 29, 2018. The results were analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 26.0. Results: Hospital mortality rate was 1.43%. The Circumstances of death were dominated by road accidents with 48.2%. Trauma to the lower limbs, the spine and polytrauma were the most frequently observed lesions on admission of patients with 40%, 27.3% and 28.2% respectively. Neurovegetative complications (29.51 %) and cardiopulmonary arrest (18.03 %) were the main causes of death at autopsy. Results: Hospital mortality rate was 1.43%. The Circumstances of death were dominated by road accidents with 48.2%. Trauma to the lower limbs, the spine and polytrauma were the most frequently observed lesions on admission of patients with 40%, 27.3% and 28.2% respectively. Neurovegetative complications (29.51 %) and cardiopulmonary arrest (18.03 %) were the main causes of death at autopsy. Conclusion: Traffic accidents are the most common cause of death from trauma. They can be avoided or limited by a good road safety policy.