Epidemiology and Prevalence of Musculoskeletal Disabilities Following Motor Vehicle Accidents in Aljouf Region, Saudi Arabia

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Epidemiology and Prevalence of Musculoskeletal Disabilities Following Motor Vehicle Accidents in Aljouf Region, Saudi Arabia
by Dalia Mahmoud Abdelmonem Elsherbini 1,*ORCID,Lashin Saad Ali 2,3,Nesma M. Allam 4,5ORCID,Radwa T. Elshorbagy 4,6,Hadaya Mosaad Eladl 4,5ORCID,Ateya Megahed Ibrahim 7,8ORCID,Yasser M. Elbastawisy 9,Mamdouh Eldesoqui 10ORCID andMohamed El-Sherbiny 10,11ORCID
1
Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Jouf University, P.O. Box 2014, Sakaka 72388, Saudi Arabia
2
Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, Al-Ahliyya Amman University, Amman 19111, Jordan
3
Department of Medical Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Mansoura University, Mansoura 35516, Egypt
4
Department of Physical Therapy and Health Rehabilitation, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Jouf University, P.O. Box 2014, Sakaka 72388, Saudi Arabia
5
Department of Physical Therapy for Surgery, Faculty of Physical Therapy, Cairo University, Giza 11432, Egypt
6
Department of Physical Therapy for Musculoskeletal Disorders and Their Surgeries, Faculty of Physical Therapy, Cairo University, Giza 11432, Egypt
7
College of Nursing, Prince Sattam bin Abdulaziz University, Al-Kharj 11942, Saudi Arabia
8
Department of Family and Community Health Nursing, Faculty of Nursing, Port Said University, Port Said 42511, Egypt
9
Department of Basic Medical Sciences, College of Medicine, Al-Rayan Colleges, Al-Madinah 41311, Saudi Arabia
10
Department of Basic Medical Sciences, College of Medicine, AlMaarefa University, P.O. Box 71666, Diriyah 11597, Saudi Arabia

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*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Medicina 2024, 60(10), 1562; https://doi.org/10.3390/medicina60101562
Submission received: 16 August 2024 / Revised: 19 September 2024 / Accepted: 21 September 2024 / Published: 24 September 2024
(This article belongs to the Section Epidemiology & Public Health)
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Abstract
Background and Objectives: Motor vehicle accidents (MVAs) are the leading cause of disability, particularly among young adults in Saudi Arabia. Persistent disabilities account for around 7% of all injuries attributed to MVAs in Saudi Arabia in the last twenty years. Limited studies on musculoskeletal disabilities following MVAs have been carried out in Saudi Arabia. This study aims to explore the epidemiology and prevalence of musculoskeletal disabilities in motor vehicle accident (MVA) patients in the Aljouf region, Saudi Arabia. Materials and Methods: This retrospective cross-sectional study evaluated all MVA victims treated in the Aljouf region, Saudi Arabia, from January 2020 to December 2022. A total of 3252 medical records were collected, with 731, 1197, and 1324 musculoskeletal injury cases per year, of which 88, 168, and 153 records from 2020, 2021, and 2022 were analysed, respectively. Results: The study found that patients aged 25–34 and 35–44 years were the most likely to experience disability following MVAs. The difference between age groups during a single year was statistically significant (p < 0.001). Most patients were male (89.8%, 82.7%, and 79.7%) during 2020, 2021, and 2022, respectively. The majority of injuries involved the upper extremities (38.6%, 36.9%, and 40.5%), followed by lower extremities (36.4%, 35.7%, and 34.6%), head and neck (21.6%, 26.2%, and 34.6%), thoracic region (20.5%, 24.4%, and 17%), and finally lumbosacral spine (6.8%, 5.4%, and 6.5%) during 2020, 2021, and 2022, respectively, with a significant difference for each year (p < 0.001). The study found a link between the likelihood of developing high disability grades and injury severity scores. The patients with very severe ISS ≥ 25 (OR: ∞ CI 95%: 39.81–∞; p < 0.001), severe ISS = 16–24 (OR: ∞ CI 95%: 20.90–∞; p < 0.001), and moderate ISS = 9–15 (OR: ∞ CI 95%: 1.2–∞; p = 0.02) were at greater risk of developing high grades of disability. Conclusions: This study highlighted the musculoskeletal disabilities in the Aljouf region following MVAs. Severe musculoskeletal disabilities were rare, but fractures were the most common following MVAs. More efforts should be directed towards education on early transportation and transfer to the nearest medical centres, seeking assistance immediately after MVAs for patient safety, and disability prevention.