Abdulkarim Ali
Midland Regional Hospital, UK
Title: Agricultural and Farming Injuries in the Irish Midland
Biography
Biography: Abdulkarim Ali
Abstract
Background: The agricultural and farming business are an important source of employment in the Midlands. This is a retrospective study examining the demographics, characteristics, and outcomes of agricultural and equestrian related injuries presenting to the Midland Regional Hospital, Tullamore, Co. Offaly. Methods: Every presentation to the Accident & Emergency Department at the Midlands Regional Hospital in 2013 was assed retrospectively to determine if an injury had been sustained in an agricultural or equestrian environment. Patient characteristics and injury details were collected for 345 patients who attended the Accident & Emergency Department. Patient demographics, month of occurrence, mechanism of injury, radiology results, management and follow up data were collected and analysed. Results: There were 196 agricultural related presentations to the Accident & Emergency Department and 149 equestrian related presentations. 23% of the agricultural injuries and 36% of the equestrian injuries had confirmed radiological evidence of a fracture or joint dislocation. There were significantly more males involved in agricultural injuries than females (98% vs 2%, p < 0.001). There were significantly more females involved in equestrian injuries than males (58% vs 42%, p < 0.05). 10% of farming injuries and 15.4% of equestrian injuries required admission. Farming machinery accidents contributed to significantly more admissions than any other cause in the agricultural category (p < 0.01). Conclusion: agricultural and farming related injuries in the Irish midland are common presentations to orthopaedic surgeon. Increased attention to occupational health hazards seems required in the equestrian environment as Prevention of adverse health outcomes.