Page 1 of 11
Journal for Studies in Management and Planning
Available at
http://edupediapublications.org/journals/index.php/JSMaP/
e-ISSN: 2395-0463
Volume 02 Issue 8
August 2016
Available online: http://edupediapublications.org/journals/index.php/JSMaP/ P a g e | 320
Socio economic profiles of the injured children up to the age of
five years and management approaches in a village of
Bangladesh
Sayeed Mahmud1 & Abu Zafar Mahmudul Haq2
1Associate Professor & Head, Department of Community Medicine, Chittagong Medical
College, Chittagong, Bangladesh
E-mail: sayeed12_cmc@yahoo.com
2Associate Professor, Department of Business Administration, City University, Dhaka,
Bangladesh
E-mail:cityuniversity1215@gmail.com
Abstract
This study was a descriptive type of cross
sectional study with a sample size of 162.
The selected samples were children up to the
age of five years. Sample and selected sites
of the study were done purposively. Data
were collected with the help of pre
structured questionnaires through direct
interviews. Interviews were conducted
among the mothers, fathers, grandparents or
any other superiors of the selected children.
Techniques of analyses were frequency and
percentage. Many outcomes and suggestions
were derived from the study.
Keywords
Bangladesh, children up to 5 years, injury,
village
1. Introduction
Childhood injury is a growing global public
health problem that requires urgent
attention. Injury and violence are major
killers of children throughout the world,
responsible for 9,50,000 deaths in children
each year. (WHO 2004).
Child development and behavior is highly
associated with particular injuries. For
example, poising is linked to grasping and
drinking behavior of children aged 1-3 years
while falls are related to the stage of
learning to walk between 9-18 months
(UNICEF 2008).
The burden of injury is greater on children
of low income families as those children are
less likely to get benefit from the protective
measures whereas others may receive. Rate
of death due to injury is 3-4 times higher in
low income and middle income countries
than in high income countries (WHO 2004).
In Bangladesh the number of injury related
child death each year 30,200 and number of
permanent disabilities in children caused by
injury each year 13,134 (UNICEF 2008).
Those children who survive injuries are
burdened with disability and free an
uncertain future. These children are likely to
become trapped in poverty as they are often
devoid of adequate treatment, education,
protection and lack of physical capacity to
Page 2 of 11
Journal for Studies in Management and Planning
Available at
http://edupediapublications.org/journals/index.php/JSMaP/
e-ISSN: 2395-0463
Volume 02 Issue 8
August 2016
Available online: http://edupediapublications.org/journals/index.php/JSMaP/ P a g e | 321
cope with the unexpected and challenging
environment (ibid).
Management approach following injury and
health seeking behavior has great impact on
morbidity and mortality rate of the children
due to injury. Lack of supervision and
required skill are main reasons behind
childhood injuries. Parents and care giver
often pre occupied or unable to take proper
care of children due to poverty. This
aggravated by low awareness of risks,
hazards and children’s vulnerability. Lack of
knowledge about first aid and different
social and cultural belief about the treatment
procedure later on gives rise to complication
following injury.
Several studies have been done from the
various dimensions. Study of Agran et al
(2003) showed poising injury started to rise
at the age of 9 month, continuing up to 21-
23 months and then declined. Burns from
hot liquids were substantially higher among
those aged 12-18 months. The small
structure of children increases their risk in
road environment. They are less visible than
adults and if hit by a vehicle, they are more
likely than an adult to sustain a head or neck
injury (Wilson 1991). It is also found that
small children have difficulty injury over
vehicles, judging the speed of oncoming
vehicles and discerning the distance of
vehicles from the sound of its engine (WHO
2007).
Unless injury prevention is included in
different programs such as breastfeeding,
growth monitoring, immunization and older
rehydration therapy as these children grow
up and are subjected to injuries, the impact
of the large investments in immunization,
nutrition and maternal and child health care
may be lost (Linnan et al 2007).
It is reported that burden of injuries in five
Asian countries including Bangladesh and
finds that injuries cause over a third (36.6%)
of deaths of children aged 1-4 years while
the number of deaths in more among young
age groups, the proportion of injury deaths
increases with age in all the countries
surveyed (ibid).
Another study (Rahman et al 2005)
mentioned that twenty nine percent injury
causing mortality is between 1-4 year old
deaths. Drowning was the leading cause
(80.3/100000) of injury death in 1-4 year old
children. Almost 17000 children drown each
year, roughly 46 per day. Drowning rates in
Bangladesh are 10-20 times higher than the
rates of child drowning in developed
countries. It is accounted for more than 90%
fatal injuries in this age group. In children
aged 1-4 years and 5-9 years old, the rate of
fatal RTA was higher among females than
males. In children aged 10-14 years, fatal
RTA was higher among males
(11.6/100000) than females (3.9/100000).
The highest non fatal burn rate
(782.1/100000) was among children 1-4
years old. The fatal injury was significantly
higher in female infants than in male infants.
Study of Puspa et al. (2015) aimed to
describe the epidemiology of unintentional
injuries in children, explore risk factors and
estimate the burden faced by families and
the community in the Makwanpur district. It
Page 3 of 11
Journal for Studies in Management and Planning
Available at
http://edupediapublications.org/journals/index.php/JSMaP/
e-ISSN: 2395-0463
Volume 02 Issue 8
August 2016
Available online: http://edupediapublications.org/journals/index.php/JSMaP/ P a g e | 322
conducted a household survey in
Makwanpur, covering 3441 households.
Injuries that occurred during the 12 months
before the survey and required treatment or
caused the child to be unable to take part in
usual activities for three or more days were
included. The study identified 193 cases of
non-fatal unintentional child injuries from
181 households and estimated an annual rate
of non-fatal injuries of 24.6/1000 children;
rates for boys were double (32.7/1000) that
for girls (16.8/1000). The rates were higher
among the children of age groups 1–4 years
and 5–9 years. Falls were the most common
cause of non-fatal child injuries followed by
burns in preschool children and road traffic
injuries were the most likely cause in
adolescence. Mean period of disability
following injury was 25 days. The rates and
the mechanisms of injury vary by age and
gender. Falls and burns are currently the
most common mechanisms of injury
amongst young children around rural homes.
Accordong to Borse et al. (2008), childhood
injury report for children less than one year
old age, two thirds of injury deaths were due
to suffocation in USA. Drowning was the
leading cause injury death for those 1-4
years of age, falls accounted for over 50% of
non fatal injuries. Rate for fires or burns and
drowning were the highest for children 4
years and younger.
Unintentional injuries are the leading cause
of death among Florida residents ages 1-44.
Florida’s age adjusted injuries death rates
were higher than in the national average. It
is reported that a staggering 200.4 percent
for unintentional drowning among children
ages 1-4 (Florida’s need for injury
prevention, 2013).
It also reported that motors vehicle crashes
are a leading cause of unintentional injury
death and hospitalization among children
ages 0-14(Washington state child occupant
safety policy and systems strategies, 2012-
2016)
Results from two school based health
surveys of 6-17 year old children in Sweden
examined correlations between ADHD and
ASD and injury risk in Sweden children. It
found evidence of increased risks in children
with ADHD but those with ASD (Carld B et
al. 2016).
Another study was to identify the risk
factors for pediatric injury within a rural
Roma community in Cluj county, Romania.
The main hazards identified in the
community were burn risks due to
unprotected and accessible metal stoves, CO
intoxications due to inadequate heating
systems, fire and electric shocks due to lose
electric wires, cuts and puncture wounds due
to unsupervised tools and metal garbage,
bite wounds from stray dogs, as well as road
traffic injuries (LUMINITA-Rural risk
assessment: child injury in a Roma
community 2009-2010).
2. Objective and Methodology
The objective of the study was to examine
the socio economic profiles of the injured
children up to the age of five years and
management approaches which are followed
by their respective guardians. Selection of
