Citation

Yates PJ, Williams WH, Harris A, Round A, Jenkins R. J. Neurol. Neurosurg. Psychiatry 2006; 77(5): 699-701.

Affiliation

University of Exeter, United Kingdom.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2006, BMJ Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1136/jnnp.2005.081901

PMID

16464899

PMCID

PMC2117473

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to identify the attendance rate for all head injuries, and for moderate-severe head injury (MSHI), in an Emergency Department (ED), and related risk factors for MSHI, including age, sex, area of residence (AoR) and socio-economic status (SES). DESIGN: A retrospective descriptive epidemiological study of an ED database of head injury attendances over 6 years. Setting & PARTICIPANTS: An ED that serves both urban and mixed rural/urban areas, with a wide socio-economic range, and a total population of 344,600. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Rates of attendance for head injury. RESULTS: Head injury presentations accounted for 3.4% of all attendances per year. An overall rate of 453/100,000 was found for all head injuries, of which 40/100,000 were moderate-severe (10.9%). There was significantly greater risk of presenting with Moderate-Severe Head Injury (MSHI) for urban compared to mixed rural residents. Males were more at risk than females. Children and adolescents were at elevated risk of MSHI. A high attendance rate of MSHI was found in the under 5 age group in urban areas for both sexes. A gradient, with higher attendance in lower SES groups, was observed for children in urban areas, whilst the gradient was reversed in mixed-rural areas. CONCLUSIONS: Head injuries are a relatively common cause of attendance at ED. There is significant variation in attendance with MSHI on the basis of sex, age, socio-economic factors and type of area of residence. The planning and delivery of preventative and management services may be improved by such analyses.