"Current incidence of injuries in Iran; findings of STEPS survey 2021"

Elnaz Shahmohamadi; Erfan Ghasemi; Esmaeil Mohammadi; Maryam Nasserinejad; Sina Azadnajafabad; Mohammad-Reza Malekpour; Mohammad-Mahdi Rashidi; Naser Ahmadi; Negar Rezaei; Mohammadreza Naderian; Moein Yoosefi; Yosef Farzi; Nazila Rezaei; Rosa Haghshenas; Elham Abdolhamidi; Ali Golestani; Ameneh Kazemi; Mahdi Delaram Dizaj; Niusha Nazari; Azadeh Momen Nia Rankohi; Mahbobeh Darman; Shirin Djalalinia; Alireza Moghisi; Farshad Farzadfar

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e20907

"Current incidence of injuries in Iran; findings of STEPS survey 2021"

Heliyon. 2023 Oct 14;9(11):e20907. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e20907. eCollection 2023 Nov.

Authors

Elnaz Shahmohamadi¹, Erfan Ghasemi¹, Esmaeil Mohammadi^{1

2}, Maryam Nasserinejad^{1

3}, Sina Azadnajafabad¹, Mohammad-Reza Malekpour¹, Mohammad-Mahdi Rashidi¹, Naser Ahmadi¹, Negar Rezaei¹, Mohammadreza Naderian^{1

4}, Moein Yoosefi^{1

5}, Yosef Farzi¹, Nazila Rezaei¹, Rosa Haghshenas¹, Elham Abdolhamidi¹, Ali Golestani¹, Ameneh Kazemi¹, Mahdi Delaram Dizaj¹, Niusha Nazari^{1

6}, Azadeh Momen Nia Rankohi¹, Mahbobeh Darman⁷, Shirin Djalalinia⁸, Alireza Moghisi⁹, Farshad Farzadfar^{1

6}

Affiliations

¹ Non-communicable Disease Research Center, Endocrinology and Metabolism Population Sciences Research Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
² Department of Neurological Surgery, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma, Oklahoma, USA.
³ Center for Life Course Health Research, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland.
⁴ Tehran Heart Center, Cardiovascular Diseases Research Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
⁵ Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, NL, Canada.
⁶ Endocrinology and Metabolism Research Center, Endocrinology and Metabolism Clinical Sciences Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
⁷ Deputy of Health, Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Tehran, Iran.
⁸ Development of Research and Technology center, Deputy of Research and Technology Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Tehran, Iran.
⁹ Deputy General Director for NCD Management Office, Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Tehran, IR, Iran.

Abstract

Background: The updated epidemiology of injuries at the national and sub-national levels are required for policymakers to effectively handle the burden of injuries. This paper aimed to assess the incidence and risk factors of different injuries in Iran based on a recent national survey.

Methods: We used data from Iran Stepwise approach to surveillance (STEPS) Survey 2021, a population-based study in urban and rural areas of Iran's 31 provinces. A multistage clustered probability design and weighting adjustments were used to select eligible individuals and generate estimations. We estimated the incidence of injuries, assessed sociodemographic variables, and identified potential behavioral risk factors associated with injuries, and results were reported for sociodemographic and geographic stratifications.

Result: Data from 27,874 participants of the STEPS survey were assessed, of which 1538 (5.5 %, 95 % CI: [5.2-5.8]) reported having an injury in the past 12 months. Falls (44.4 %) were the most common cause of injury, followed by road traffic injury (21.7 %) and exposure to mechanical forces (16.5 %). Except for falls and burns, males had a higher proportion of all types of injuries. Logistic regression analysis showed that being male (OR: 1.7, [1.5, 2.0]) and being an occasional or heavy alcohol drinker (OR: 2.0, [1.3, 3.0] and OR: 2.7, [1.7, 4.1] respectively) were significant risk factors associated with road traffic injuries. Seatbelt use was 90.0 % among both drivers and front-seat passengers, while the use of safety car seats for children was as low as 9.4 %. Injury incidence varied significantly among provinces, with the highest incidence among males observed in Razavi Khorasan (11.2 %) and among females observed in Tehran (12.0 %).

Conclusion: This study investigated the updated epidemiology of injuries in Iran and revealed socioeconomic and geographic disparities across country. This epidemiological information can be used to modify injury prevention programs.

Keywords: Epidemiology; Fall; Injuries; Iran; Road traffic injury.