Demographics of firearm homicides an autopsy study

Objective: to analyze the demographics of victims of fatal firearm injuries inflicted with homicidal intent. material and methods: this descriptive study was performed from january 2013 to december 2013. record of autopsies performed on homicide victims in peshawar district was obtained and analyzed. the variables included in results were age,gender,manner of death,cause of death and areas of body involved in firearm injuries. results: reports of of 1430 autopsies in the district peshawar were analyzed. out of these 1309 (91.54%) were alleged homicidal cases. among these homicidal cases,1055 (80.59%) were homicides caused by firearms. among the firearm homicides male to female ratio was found to be 8.75:1. most affected age groups were 20-29 years (36.1%),30-39 years (22.7%) and 40-49 years (14.1%). the areas of body frequently involved included chest 53%,head & neck 47.1% and abdomen 28%. conclusion: the incidence of firearm homicide in peshawar has increased dramatically over the past decade. the vast majority of homicides in peshawar are being conducted with firearms which bring up issues related to up gradation of firearm management facilities in the regional hospitals and tightening of legislation regarding small arms control. © 2015 khyber medical college. all rights recerved.