Around 500 people, mostly motorcyclists, suffer injuries in road traffic accidents in Karachi on a daily basis and are brought to the emergency units of different hospitals for treatment, as reported by a newspaper. A senior orthopaedic surgeon in Pakistan mentioned that a significant number of the victims face permanent disabilities, altering their lives forever.
Hundreds of trauma surgeons, medical specialists, and students are attending the two-day 36th International Pak Orthocon 2023 organized by the Peoples University of Medical and Health Sciences for Women (PUMHSW), Nawabshah, in Karachi. The event includes discussions on bones, injuries, trauma, infections, joint replacements, bone health issues in women, children, and the elderly, osteoporosis, and advancements in orthopaedics.
Numerous research papers and studies are being presented by national and international speakers, the organizers noted. The experts emphasized that a considerable amount of money is spent daily on the treatment of multiple trauma injury victims in the city, which could be prevented through an organized way of life and an integrated healthcare system.
Approximately 70 percent of trauma injury victims taken to hospitals in the city are young motorcyclists who require expensive treatment, surgeries, medical implants, and medications on a regular basis, which can be life-changing for them, according to the experts.
As per the World Health Organisation, road traffic injuries are the leading cause of death for children and young adults aged 5-29 years, while approximately 1.3 million people die each year as a result of road traffic crashes.
WHO fact sheet on road traffic trauma injuries said that more than half of all road traffic deaths are among vulnerable road users: pedestrians, cyclists, and motorcyclists.
Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon Professor Badruddin Sahito said that every day around 500 Karachiites suffer injuries in road traffic accidents.
He said that trauma injuries were “not considered diseases” and because of that, no measures were taken to prevent people from getting injured on roads in Pakistan.
He said billions of rupees could be saved by preventing road accidents as well and youngsters could be saved from becoming disabled for the rest of their lives by following traffic rules strictly, as per thenewspaper.
“We need to ensure that traffic rules are followed on the roads. Pakistani motorcyclists are the most reckless drivers as they don’t have licences and training, which could save their own lives. Getting killed or becoming physically disabled is also a cause of trauma for families of young people,” Sahito added.