Tale of Endurance

Global Burden

Injury is a leading cause of death and disability in the world. According to World Health Organization (WHO), every year -

• more than 5.8 million people die from injuries, with a rate of 97 per 100,000 population. Of this, 3.8 million (128.6 per 100,000 population) are male and 1.9 million (66.7 per 100.000 population) are female.
• A quarter of the deaths are due to road traffic accidents. 16 percent are suicides and 10 percents are homicides.
• Among all age groups, injury is the fifth leading cause of death in the world and accounts for 10 to 30 percent of all hospital admissions.
• More than one- quarter of injury deaths occur in South East Asia.

Bangladesh Burden

• In 1983, 9 percent of all deaths among 1 - 4 years children were due to drowning, By 2000 this had risen to 53 percent.
• Bangladesh Health & Injury Survey, 2005 showed that an estimated 30,000 children die each year due to injury. This represents 38% of all deaths among children 1 - 17 years of age.
• Study done in rural population reported that in one year around 3.9% have reported one or more injury that restricted the victim of at least one day’s work.
• Road traffic injuries alone cause a loss of about 2% of GDP in Bangladesh and the estimated total annual cost of road traffic crashes is approximately US$ 230 million.
• There are also frequent cases of household and occupational injuries.
• Injuries during emergencies such as drowning, snake bite and electrocution have also become a major concern.
• Homicidal acid burn is another social curse that needs priority attention.