Prevalence of non-fatal injuries and associated factors in Mbarara Municipality, Western Uganda, December 2016-June 2017

Rebecca Nuwematsiko1,&, Angela N. Kisakye1,2, David Musoke1, Delia Bandoh3, Lillian Bulage4, Olufemi Olamide Ajumobi5,6, Frederick Oporia1, Fiston Muneza1, Nino Paichadze7, George Pariyo8 Abdulgafoor Bachani8, Olive Kobusingye1, Kenneth Mugwanya1, John Ssempebwa1 

1Makerere University School of Public Health, College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda

2African Field Epidemiology Network, Kampala Uganda

3Ghana Field Epidemiology and Laboratory Training program

4Public Health Fellowship Program/African Field Epidemiology Network

5Nigeria Field Epidemiology and Laboratory Training Program, Abuja Nigeria

6African Field Epidemiology Network Nigeria Country Office, Abuja

7Milken Institute School of Public Health, George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA

8Johns Hopkins International Injury Research Unit, Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health 

&Corresponding author

Rebecca Nuwematsiko, Makerere University School of Public Health, College of Health Sciences, New Mulago Hill Hospital Complex, P.O Box 7072, Kampala, Uganda, 

beckyrich123@gmail.com

Received: 20/10/18     Accepted: 6/11/2018   Published: 13/11/18 

CITATION:Rebecca Nuwematsiko, Angela N. Kisakye, David Musoke, Delia Bandoh, Lillian Bulage, Olufemi Olamide Ajumobi, et al. Prevalence of Non-Fatal Injuries and Associated Factors in Mbarara Municipality, Western Uganda December 2016-June 2017. J Interv Epidemiol Public Health. 2018 Nov;1(1).

©Rebecca Nuwematsiko1et al. Journal of Interventional Epidemiology and Public Health This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution International 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. 

Abstract

Background: Injuries are a significant public health problem but poorly quantified especially in low and middle-income countries. In Uganda, the burden of injuries is poorly quantified with most of the data reported being facility and mortality based. Many non-fatal injuries, therefore, remain unreported in communities. We conducted a household survey in Mbarara Municipality to identify and describe all non-fatal injury events and the associated factors. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study of non-fatal injuries among 966 household members in Mbarara Municipality, from May to June 2017. The most recent non-fatal injury (within a six-month recall period; December 2016 to June 2017) resulting in loss of at least one day of usual daily operating activity was considered. We conducted a descriptive statistical analysis to estimate the counts and frequencies of non-fatal injuries. We identified factors associated with non-fatal injuries using a modified Poisson regression model. Results: The prevalence of non-fatal injuries was 18.2% (176/966) with 92% (162/176) of the non-fatal injuries being unintentional. Falls 27.3% (48/176) were the most common cause of injury followed by road traffic injuries (RTI), 26.7% (47/176), burns 16.5% (29/176) and the least being poisoning 2.8% (5/176). Occupation as casual laborer (Adjusted PR=2.1, 95% CI: 1.2 - 3.7), urban residency (Adjusted PR=1.5, 95% CI: 1.1 - 1.9) and being a non-native of the study area (Adjusted PR=1.7, 95% CI: 1.3 - 2.3) were independently associated with non-fatal injuries. Conclusion: Almost one out of five people had suffered a non-fatal injury in the past six months in Mbarara Municipality. Majority of the non-fatal injuries were unintentional, caused by falls and RTIs, and were amongst casual labourers and urban residents. These findings reveal a gap in injury prevention in Uganda that needs to be addressed to improve the quality of life.

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