Abstract

Road traffic accident (RTA) is a growing public health problem in Nigeria, but unfortunately,
little or no work has been done on this subject. This is a retrospective study of deaths
resulting from Road Traffic Accidents at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital
(LASUTH), Ikeja, Lagos between January 2003 and December 2008. Accidents accounted
for 1045 (18%) of the 5778 autopsies during the study period. The male to female ratio was
4.3:1. The highest incidence in male and female victims occurred between 20-29 years
(23.9%) and 30-39 years (4.8%), respectively. Commercial motorcyclists represented 9.2% of
cases. Abrasions accounted for 52.6% of the injuries sustained, followed by skull fracture
(13.1%). Most (55.7%) of the male and female victims were pedestrians. Vehicular and
pillion passengers represented 15.3% and 13.2% respectively. In terms of anatomical regions
involved, the head and neck accounted for 48.4% followed by multiple regions and chest,
representing 19.7% and 12.9% respectively. Most deaths occurred either at the scene (45.3%)
or within 24 hours (45.4%) of the accident. Overall, the commonest cause of death was
multiple injuries (43.9%), followed by craniocerebral injuries (38.7%). In conclusion, this
study has shown that one in five autopsies was an accident case, with a male predominance
and predilection for working class populations, and pedestrians are the main victims. The
efforts to combat RTAs in the country are presently uncoordinated and inadequately
evaluated for possible feedback and improvement. It is advocated that the roles of
government in road traffic accident prevention should be monitored by international
organizations in a bid to stem the rising tide of carnage on our roads.