epidemiological pattern of injuries in iran; a nationwide review of seven million emergency department admissions

introduction: globally, it is estimated that around 5.8 million people die annually as result of injuries, which causes 10% of all deaths and 16% of disability adjusted life years lost worldwide. this study aimed to determine the epidemiology of injuries in emergency departments in iran. method: this cross sectional study was carried out using national injury surveillance data registry from 21 march 2009 to 20 march 2014. results: 7,176,344 patients with the mean age of 27.5 ± 17.8 years were registered to 657 eds (70.6% male). road traffic crash (rtc) was the most common cause of injury (31.0%) followed by hit (28.2%) and fall (10.1%). while roads were the commonest place of injuries, 34.0% of patients have been injured at home. more than 90% of injuries were unintentional. assault and suicide attempt were causes of injury in 5.6% and 3.9% of patients, respectively. conclusion: this paper addresses where prevention measures are most urgently needed and offers insights which could be useful for injury prevention programs in iran and other developing countries.