Objectives: The hazardous environmental conditions hurricanes create might increase injury incidence almost 7 times. Therefore, a cohort study was performed at the Puerto Rico Trauma Hospital to compare morbidity and mortality patterns of patients after Hurricane Maria with a control period.
Methods: Admissions from September 20, 2017, through January 20, 2018, constituted the post-Maria period (473 patients); the corresponding months of the previous year comprised the pre-Maria period (439 patients). Comparisons were done using Pearson's chi-square or Mann-Whitney U-tests, as appropriate. A logistic regression was performed to assess the association between mortality and the study period.
Results: Postlandfall admissions among patients aged 40-64 y increased by 6.6%, while among subjects between ages 18 and 39 y dropped by 7.0% ( = 0.03). Falls, gunshots, and burns were the injury mechanisms that varied the most across the exposure period. The median Injury Severity Score (13 vs 12; = 0.05) and the frequency of Glasgow Coma Scale scores ≤8 (17.1% vs 10.9%; = 0.03) were higher among poststorm patients. Moreover, a 2-fold (odds ratio = 1.93; 95% CI: 1.07-3.47) increase in mortality was observed after Maria, when adjusting for covariates.
Conclusions: Following a hurricane, trauma centers might expect an older population, with more severe injuries and a 2-fold increased mortality risk.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
---|---|
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/dmp.2020.41 | DOI Listing |
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!