TY - JOUR
T1 - Road traffic injuries in Tanzanian children and adolescents
T2 - A cross-sectional household survey
AU - Akasreku, Bridget
AU - Rwejumura, Gladness
AU - Maroko, Andrew
AU - Nyanza, Ramadhani
AU - Malekela, George
AU - Kalolo, Simon
AU - Yokeeswaran, Umadevi
AU - Fiori, Kevin P.
AU - Abwe, Furaha
AU - Teasdale, Chloe A.
N1 - Funding Information:
The study was funded by Foundation Botnar https://www.fondationbotnar.org/
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 Elsevier Ltd
PY - 2023/1
Y1 - 2023/1
N2 - Objective: To measure annual rates of road traffic injuries (RTI) and to describe the characteristics of road traffic crashes experienced by children and adolescents in Tanga, Tanzania. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional household survey using geospatial population-weighted sampling in the city of Tanga in northern Tanzania. Data were collected in February and March of 2022. We report 12-month rates of road traffic crashes and RTI (reported by adult caregivers) among children and adolescents <18 years of age. Results: A total of 2,794 adult respondents reported data on 6563 children and adolescents, among whom, 180 were reported to have experienced road traffic crashes in the past 12 months (crash incidence: 27.4 per 1,000 children, 95%CI 23.5-31.4) and 158 sustained injuries (RTI incidence: 24.1 per 1000 children, 95%CI 20.4-27.8). Almost a quarter of RTI (23%) were reported to be major (resulting in ≥30 days of missed activities). RTI was higher among adolescents (13-17 years) than children <5 years (21.5 vs. 14.1 per 1,000, p=0.039). Few children always or sometimes wore helmets when riding on motorcycles/motorbikes (12.8%) or wore safety restraints/seat belts in cars or other vehicles (11.9%). Conclusion: The high rate of road traffic crashes and RTI observed among children and adolescents in a medium-sized city in Tanzania underscores the urgent need to improve road safety and increase use of safety equipment in low resource settings.
AB - Objective: To measure annual rates of road traffic injuries (RTI) and to describe the characteristics of road traffic crashes experienced by children and adolescents in Tanga, Tanzania. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional household survey using geospatial population-weighted sampling in the city of Tanga in northern Tanzania. Data were collected in February and March of 2022. We report 12-month rates of road traffic crashes and RTI (reported by adult caregivers) among children and adolescents <18 years of age. Results: A total of 2,794 adult respondents reported data on 6563 children and adolescents, among whom, 180 were reported to have experienced road traffic crashes in the past 12 months (crash incidence: 27.4 per 1,000 children, 95%CI 23.5-31.4) and 158 sustained injuries (RTI incidence: 24.1 per 1000 children, 95%CI 20.4-27.8). Almost a quarter of RTI (23%) were reported to be major (resulting in ≥30 days of missed activities). RTI was higher among adolescents (13-17 years) than children <5 years (21.5 vs. 14.1 per 1,000, p=0.039). Few children always or sometimes wore helmets when riding on motorcycles/motorbikes (12.8%) or wore safety restraints/seat belts in cars or other vehicles (11.9%). Conclusion: The high rate of road traffic crashes and RTI observed among children and adolescents in a medium-sized city in Tanzania underscores the urgent need to improve road safety and increase use of safety equipment in low resource settings.
KW - Children
KW - Road traffic injuries
KW - Tanzania
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85143849960&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85143849960&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.injury.2022.11.052
DO - 10.1016/j.injury.2022.11.052
M3 - Article
C2 - 36496266
AN - SCOPUS:85143849960
SN - 0020-1383
VL - 54
SP - 160
EP - 167
JO - Injury
JF - Injury
IS - 1
ER -