Retrospective analysis of patients who admitted to the emergency service with orthopedic injuries

The purpose of this study is to determine the demographic characteristics of forensic reported patients who entered to emergency service with orthopedic injuries, the problems of doctors responsible for these people’s treatment and to contribute the extremity trauma data literature in our country during 12 months. between 1 january 2010-31 december 2010; in the duzce university school of medicine research and training hospital emergency department treated and examined 600 patients who were forensic reported and have orthopedics injuries (soft tissue injury, fractures, dislocations, tendon injury, skin and subcutaneous incision, vascular- nerve injuries and amputations) were analyzed from computer data and forensic reports. quantitative data were presented with mean ± standard deviation, while qualitative data were presented as frequencies and percentages. for the analysis of categorical variables chi-square test (and/or fisher’s exact test) was chosen. four hundred sixty eight patients (78%) were male and 132 (22%) were female. the mean age was 33.7±17.7. 162 patients (27.0%) were hospitalized. patients hospitalized mostly in the orthopedics clinic (n=90, 55.6%), second in plastic surgery (n=57, 35.2%). all of the types of injuries were seen more frequently in males, and this difference was statistically significant (p<0.001). a large number of patients discharged from the emergency department (n=431, 71.8%), 2 (0.3%) patients were unfortunately lost. extremity trauma cases brought to the emergency room for trauma has to be known by a special case by medical doctors, more comprehensive medical history should be taken and physical examination should be done systematically not only for the extremities. also the following or needing control in early period patients with extremity trauma and associated traumas should not be avoided from hospitalization.