Epidemiology of Road Accident Death in Qom Province, 2014 (Iran)

Abstract

Background and Objectives: Every year a large number of our countrymen lose their lives due to traffic accidents. Traffic accidents lead to considerable social and economic burden, and in case of serious neglect, it may be turned into a national disaster. This study was carried out to investigate the epidemiology of road accident deaths in Qom Province.   Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed to investigate the road driving accident deaths in Qom Privince in the first 5 months of 2014 (March 21 to July 23 using the data provided by the Legal Medicine Organization. Data were analyzed by Chi square test (for comparison of differences in number of deaths in terms of gender and age).   Results: The total number of deaths was reported 80 individuals in the first 5 months of 2014. The highest statistics of death was related to the Qom–Aveh road with 11 deaths, and 29 deaths were due to vehicle rollover. Most of the victims (17 cases), were in the age group of 0-10 years, followed by 21-30 and 31-40 age groups, each with 15 cases; 59 deceased individuals were male, and 28 individuals had primary education level, while this rate was two cases in individuals with bachelor's degree. Forty-one deceased individuals, were drivers. Fifty-seven subjects died at the scene of the accident. Multiple fractures and head trauma, were the most common cause of death with 38 and 36 subjects, respectively. Seventy deaths were related to the main roads and 17 deaths occurred on Thursday.   Conclusion: Due to high incidence of traffic accidents and death cases, there is a need for comprehensive programming by responsible organizations, such as traffic center, relief and rescue systems, and cultural institutions to deal with this phenomenon.  Therefore, investigation of death causes and comparison of its mechanism can lead to good results.     &nbsp