Predictive Factors for Fatality After Traumatic Brain Injury Among Road Traffic Crash Victims in Addis Ababa City, Ethiopia

Abstract Background Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is one of the common preventable causes of mortality and disability among road traffic victims worldwide, most especially in low- and middle-income countries, including Ethiopia. Objective to determine risk factors of mortality after traumatic brain injury due to road traffic crash. Methods This study aimed to examine the predictive factors of short-term mortality after severe brain injury due to a road traffic crash. The study was done on a prospective cohort of 242 severely brain-injured patients selected using cluster sampling in Addis Ababa City hospitals. The study was conducted from February 2018 to November 2019. Data were collected from brain-injured patients using a questionnaire and recorded findings within the first 24 hours of admission, Survival Analysis was used for statistical analysis. Ethical clearance was obtained from the Addis Ababa University, College of Health Sciences Institutional Review Board (IRB). Confidentiality of information about injured patients was maintained. Results In this study, the death rate was 73(30.2%). The majority of TBI patients accounting for, 186(81%) were men. The median age of TBI patients was 29 years. The hazard for those patients with subnormal body temperature was 1.64 times that of normal temperature (AHR: 1.64; CI: 2.14-10.29). The estimated fatality hazard ratio for patients who experienced Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS)below six was 5.61 times higher compared to GCS six to eight (CI:3.1-10.24). Conclusion In conclusion, there was high early mortality of patients (30.2%) in Ethiopia. Being men, young and lower GCS were associated with higher mortality hazards. Hence, optimum advanced neuro-surgical pre-hospital care programs are urgently needed.