Abstract
The epidemiology of head injury was studied in Cantabria, Spain, using a methodological design consisting of a cross-selectional analysis of one year of duration and an additional one year follow-up of all the patients included in the initial sample. The 477 cases identified represent a rate of 91/100,000, with males showing a head injury rate 2.7 times higher that than for females. Sixty per cent of all cases involved traffic accidents, falls accounted for 24% and industrial accidents were the cause in 8%. The annual age-adjusted mortality rate was 19.7/100,000. Over 92% of all deaths occurred prior to hospital admission. The presence of alcohol intoxication was evaluated in 211 cases by determining the osmolar gap. It was found that 51% of all the cases examined presented clear evidence of acute alcohol intoxication.
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Vazquez-Barquero, A., Vazquez-Barquero, J., Austin, O. et al. The epidemiology of head injury in Cantabria. Eur J Epidemiol 8, 832–837 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00145328
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00145328