Saddar Rahim, Anwar-ul Haq, Shahid Alam, Farooq Abdullah, Ibrar Khan, Samiullah.
Road traffic injuries among children- a tertiary care hospital based study.
J Saidu Med Col Jan ;10(1):18-21.

Background: Pakistan is a developing country, its population comprises of more than 200 million people. Approximately more than 1/3rd of Pakistan's population is composed of children. Road traffic injuries (RTIs) among children are the leading causes of death and disability and the biggest threat to the health of Pakistani children. This study describes the risk factors involved in causation of RTIs. Objective: To determine the various risk factors/ predisposing factors involved in causation of road traffic injuries among children. Material and Methods: A cross sectional study of 06 months duration was carried out in a tertiary care hospital. Data was collected from all consecutive victims of RTIs presenting to casualty peadiatric surgery unit Lady Reading Hospital Peshawar and recorded on profoma. Results: Total 73 victims of RTIs are incuded in the study of whom 68.5% (n=50) were male. RTIs were common in the age group of 6-12years and most of the RTIs, 42.5% (n=31) occurred between 8 AM to 2 PM. RTIs were common in pedestrians, unaccompnied children, families with many children, children from urban areas, and in the month of january. Children of illiterate, poor parents and those children whose parents were laborer were commonly found to be involved in RTIs. Conclusions: This study has confirmed that the male children of increasing age with poor and illiterate background are the most vulnerable to road traffic injuries. Implementation of road safety meassures, education campaigns, traffic rules and regulations, road engineering and safe pedestrian areas along side the roads will help to reduce road traffic injuries among children.

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