Descriptive analysis of sequels deriving from traffic accidents in Maceió, Alagoas

Abstract

Traffic accidents determine early losses of lives and sequels with a high cost to society. No country is safe from this tragedy and this accumulation of suffering, punishing particularly the young people and bringing social and economic consequences extremely important. This research aimed to make a descriptive analysis of physical and functional sequels deriving to traffic accidents of victms attended by the Medico Legal Institute Estácio de Lima, Maceió/AL, Brazil in 2006. It consists of a cross and retrospective epidemiological study. Three hundred and seventy-seven reports of body injury were analyzed, covering the period January to December 2006. Of those reports, 48.8% of the victims presented sequels. The victims investigated were characterized by being, in the majority, youths and young adults (56.8%), males (76.9%). The highest number of accidents was the automobile (77.7%). Most of the accidents had serious injuries (35%), of which 53% of these had some kind of sequel. The light injuries accounted for 34.7% of the total and the serious, 30.3%. The sequels were grouped into four groups: permanent weakness (49%), permanent deformity (37%) incurable disease (6%) and loss or invalidity of the limb, sense or function (8%). From the viewpoint of Collective Health, this study contributed to more epidemiological data that could serve as a basis for assessing the situation of traffic accidents and planning of actions and services in order to seek a change of safety standards in transit, as well as to warn the public of the importance of prevention.