A profile of deaths among trauma patients in a university hospital: The Philippine experience

Abstract

Intentional causes of injury (i.e. penetrating interpersonal violence) caused the majority of trauma deaths in this series from the Philippine General Hospital. This highlights the need for prioritizing a public health approach to violence prevention in the Philippines. Further research must be conducted to identify risk factors for interpersonal violence. Early identification of lethal injuries that may cause exsanguinations and definitive control of hemorrhage should be the primary focus to prevent acute deaths, within 24 hours of admission. Further adjuncts to the definitive treatment of hemorrhage, the critical care of TBI and MOF/Sepsis are needed to reduce deaths occurring more than 72 hours after admission.