Road Traffic Accidents in Peshawar

Abstract

An analysis of 361 road traffic accident victims, which were treated over a period of one year, from Dec 1999 to Nov 2000, at Khyber Teaching Hospital, Peshawar is presented. The results revealed the sex bias towards males (8:1) with majority of the victims (63%) less than 30 years of age. Maximum cases were received during the months of June to August. Head (101 cases) was the most vulnerable part followed by chest (38), Abdomen (13) and pelvis (12). Leg and arm bones were fractured in 40 cases. Thirty –two patients died providing the mortality of 9%. The hospitalization period ranged from 5-70 days. Use of seatbelts, strict enforcement of speed limit, severe penalties for dangerous driving, highway code, education regarding safe driving and regular checks and changing of tires is suggested to lessen morbidity and mortality and to improve road safety.