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Retrospective Analysis of Injuries and Hospitalizations of Patients Following the 2009 Earthquake of L’Aquila City

Author

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  • Jacopo Del Papa

    (Postgraduate Schools of Hygiene and Public Health—Department of Life, Health and Environmental Sciences, University of L’Aquila, P.le S. Tommasi, 1, 67100 Coppito, L’Aquila, Italy)

  • Pierpaolo Vittorini

    (Department of Life, Health and Environmental Sciences, University of L’Aquila, P.le S. Tommasi, 1, 67100 Coppito, L’Aquila, Italy)

  • Francesco D’Aloisio

    (Postgraduate Schools of Hygiene and Public Health—Department of Life, Health and Environmental Sciences, University of L’Aquila, P.le S. Tommasi, 1, 67100 Coppito, L’Aquila, Italy)

  • Mario Muselli

    (Postgraduate Schools of Hygiene and Public Health—Department of Life, Health and Environmental Sciences, University of L’Aquila, P.le S. Tommasi, 1, 67100 Coppito, L’Aquila, Italy)

  • Anna Rita Giuliani

    (Department of Life, Health and Environmental Sciences, University of L’Aquila, P.le S. Tommasi, 1, 67100 Coppito, L’Aquila, Italy)

  • Alfonso Mascitelli

    (Regional Health Agency of Abruzzo Region (Italy)—Via Attilio Monti, 9, 65127 Pescara PE, Italy)

  • Leila Fabiani

    (Department of Life, Health and Environmental Sciences, University of L’Aquila, P.le S. Tommasi, 1, 67100 Coppito, L’Aquila, Italy)

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the injury patterns and the hospitalizations of patients who were admitted to hospital following the 2009 earthquake in the city of L’Aquila, Central Italy. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to analyze the patterns of earthquake-related injuries in Italy. We reviewed the hospital discharge data of 171 patients admitted to hospital within the following 96 h from the mainshock. This is an observational and descriptive study: We controlled for variables such as patient demographics, primary and secondary ICD-9-CM (International Classification of Diseases) diagnosis codes in order to identify the multiple injured patients, main type of injury that resulted in the hospital admission, discharge disposition, and average length of stay (LOS). Seventy-three percent of the 171 patients were admitted to hospital on the first day. Multiple injuries accounted for 52% of all trauma admissions, with a female to male ratio of 63% versus 37%. The most common type of injuries involved bone fractures (46.8%), while lower extremities were the most frequently affected sites (38.75%). The average LOS was 12.11 days. This study allows the evaluation of the impact of earthquake-related injuries in relation both to the health needs of the victims and to the use of the health care resources and assistance.

Suggested Citation

  • Jacopo Del Papa & Pierpaolo Vittorini & Francesco D’Aloisio & Mario Muselli & Anna Rita Giuliani & Alfonso Mascitelli & Leila Fabiani, 2019. "Retrospective Analysis of Injuries and Hospitalizations of Patients Following the 2009 Earthquake of L’Aquila City," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(10), pages 1-18, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:16:y:2019:i:10:p:1675-:d:230849
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Peng Kang & Bihan Tang & Yuan Liu & Xu Liu & Zhipeng Liu & Yipeng Lv & Lulu Zhang, 2015. "Medical Efforts and Injury Patterns of Military Hospital Patients Following the 2013 Lushan Earthquake in China: A Retrospective Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 12(9), pages 1-16, August.
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    Cited by:

    1. Francesco D’Aloisio & Pierpaolo Vittorini & Anna Rita Giuliani & Maria Scatigna & Jacopo Del Papa & Mario Muselli & Giorgio Baccari & Leila Fabiani, 2019. "Hospitalization Rates for Respiratory Diseases After L’Aquila Earthquake," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(12), pages 1-13, June.

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