Serious non-fatal unintentional injuries among in-school adolescents in Sri Lanka: results from the 2016 Sri Lankan global school-based health survey

Abstract

Background Unintentional injuries among adolescents is a major public health problem the world over. A great majority of the annual deaths among adolescents is due to unintentional injuries; it is also the leading cause of death among adolescents in the world. The aim of this study was to estimate the incidence of injuries and their associated factors among school going adolescents aged 13–17 years using data from the most recent Global School-Based Health Survey (GSHS) conducted in Sri Lanka. Methods A cross-sectional survey was conducted using a self-administered questionnaire, among 3262 adolescents attending government schools. The sample was selected through a two-staged cluster sampling technique. In the first stage, 40 schools were selected using probabilities proportional to school enrollment size, from all schools in the country that have classes in grades 8–12. Then, from the selected schools, classes were selected using systematic equal probability sampling with a random start. The weighted prevalence was calculated, and logistic regression analysis was conducted in order to determine the correlates. Results During the 12 months before the survey, 35.8% (95% CI-30.7 - 41.1) of the students reported being seriously injured one or more times. The injuries were more common among males, but were equally common among the two different age groups (13–15 age group vs 16–17 age group). The most common type of injury was cut or stab wounds (5.5%), followed by broken bones/dislocated joints (5.3%). Multivariable analysis revealed that only a few factors were associated with injury, such as being of the male sex, being bullied, being physically attacked, and/or being in a physical fight. Conclusion This study demonstrated that the prevalence of serious unintentional injuries among school going adolescents is a major public health problem in Sri Lanka. This timely and comprehensive survey would help policy makers and researchers identify the unmet needs related to adolescent injuries. Furthermore, evidence generated form the study should be given due consideration when designing school-based interventions to prevent adolescent injuries.

Unintentional Injuries Among Young Adolescents at a Level-One Trauma Center in Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…A study done in Saudi Arabia showed that within the last 12 months, the prevalence of unintentional injuries in children was 24.7%, which was lower than other studies that reported a range of 35.8%-42.9% unintentional injuries among adolescents within the same time period, especially among the 13-15 age group [8][9][10][11][12]. Moreover, this study, being consistent with others, states that boys have a higher risk of injury and mortality [8][9][10][11]13,14].…”

“…A study done in Saudi Arabia showed that within the last 12 months, the prevalence of unintentional injuries in children was 24.7%, which was lower than other studies that reported a range of 35.8%-42.9% unintentional injuries among adolescents within the same time period, especially among the 13-15 age group [8][9][10][11][12]. Moreover, this study, being consistent with others, states that boys have a higher risk of injury and mortality [8][9][10][11]13,14]. Two studies in Saudi Arabia have reported a higher prevalence of unintentional injuries due to falls (62.9% and 31.9%, respectively), which is consistent with some studies that cite falls as being the most common cause of unintentional injury [7,[13][14][15].…”

Clot Characterization by Multidisciplinary Approach: Biochemical and Imaging Parameters in A Hypocoagulative Setting. A Pilot Study

“…Being male sex, bullied, physically attacked, or being in a physical fight were associated with unintentional injury. 20 Ssemugabho et al study among 1583 children from Ugandan slum community between 6 months of age and 18 years revealed 706 had suffered 787 unintentional injuries. 21 Mathur et al study among 6308 children up to 18 yrs belonging to slum areas of Ujjain findings indicate the annual incidence of all injuries was 16.6%, the incidence was significantly higher among boys compared to girls (20.2% versus 12.7%, respectively), was highest in age group 6-10 years of age (18.9%), and urban locations (17.5%).…”

“… 19 The most common type of injury among 3262 adolescents attending government school in Sri Lanka was cut or stab wounds (5.5%), followed by broken bones/dislocated joints (5.3%). 20 An Uganda 2018 study among 1583 children (between 6 months and 18 years old ) from Ugandan slums reported commonest injuries were cuts, bites, or open wounds (30.6%) and bruises or superficial injuries (28.6%) with the majority (75.5%) occurring at home. 21.…”

Unintentional injury and its associated factors among left-behind children: a cross-sectional study

“…Surveys showed that unintentional injuries account for 3 of the 15 leading causes of death among children and adolescents under 20 years of age [ 4 ]. Traffic injury, drowning, burn and scalds, falls and poisoning accounted for 60% of the causes of death in children [ 6 ]. Worldwide, the second largest cause of disabled life expectancy (YLD) of children aged 10–24 years is unintentional injury, accounting for approximately 12.0%, approximately 6.0% in high-income countries and 16.0% in other underdeveloped areas in Sub-Sahara Africa [ 7 ].…”