Rafael Consunji (Doha / QA), Ayman El-Menyar (Doha / QA), Nazia Hirani (Doha / QA), Fatima El Sallabi (Doha / QA), Aisha Abeid (Doha / QA), Hassan Al-Thani (Doha / QA), Husham Abdelrahman (Doha / QA), Tsoler Sekayan (Doha / QA), Ahammed Abdulla Mekkodathil (Doha / QA), Ruben Peralta (Doha / QA)
Abstract text (incl. references and figure legends)
Introduction:
There have been reports of the unique epidemiology of injuries and trauma during the Holy Month of Ramadan, especially in Islamic countries. Fasting may cause physiological, habitual and behavioral changes. Likewise, driving behavior before Sohour and Iftar may be contributory to increased motor vehicle crashes around these times. This study shall describe and compare the epidemiology of injuries during Ramadan months compared to the other non-fasting months of the year.
Methods:
Data on all patients with moderate to severe injuries seeking hospitalization and/or care at the Hamad Trauma Center during the Ramadan month [R] and during the months before [P] and after Ramadan [A], for the years 2010-2012, were collected for the 30-day period before, during and after the Ramadan months, from the trauma registry of the national Level 1 trauma referral center of Qatar.
Results: There were 1,141 patients admitted during the 3-year study periods [P-353, R-357 and A-431]. Road traffic injuries, motor vehicle [34.8%] and pedestrian crashes [11.1%] were the leading mechanism of injury. Falls [30.8%] and falling objects [4.4%] were next most common. There were significant differences between P and R groups for: proportion of and hourly rate of injuries between 0500-1659H and 2001-0159H, proportion of patients with ISS 6-15 and the home as the site of injury. No differences were seen between the R and A groups.
Conclusion:
There are distinct changes in the epidemiology of trauma during the Ramadan months, when compared to the pre-Ramadan period. There is a higher rate of injuries during the overnight hours, less during the daytime, more are of moderate severity and occur at home. These changes are sustained in the post-Ramadan month; the reason/s for this should be the focus of future research.
Reference:
Road traffic crashes in Ramadan: an observational study. Tahir MN, Macassa G et al.. East Mediterr Health J. 2014 Jan 9;19 Suppl 3:S147-51.
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No