Age and gender variations in trend of road traffic fatalities in Manipal, India

Background: The incidence of road traffic fatalities has been increasing at an alarming rate and is a global cause for concern. Aims: To assess the age- and gender-based variations in the pattern of road traffic fatalities in Manipal, southern India and to provide an epidemiological profile of the population at risk. Settings and design: Registry-based retrospective research on road traffic fatalities in Manipal, extending from 1994 to 2009, was conducted at the Department of Forensic Medicine, Kasturba Medical College, Manipal. Material and methods: The data were collected from the autopsy files and information furnished by the police in the Inquest papers. Road traffic fatalities were analysed, keeping the gender and age of the victim as co-variables. Results and conclusions: Road traffic fatalities constituted the majority of autopsied cases (38.6%) and unnatural deaths (37.8%). Percentage share of road traffic fatalities with regard to unnatural deaths in Manipal did not show a definite trend during the last 16 years. Male preponderance was quite evident, male-female ratio being 7.2:1. Male mortality pattern peaked during the third decade followed by a gradual decline, whereas the mortality pattern among women was almost uniform from second to seventh decade. Overall, people in their third decade were most prone to road traffic fatalities (26.9%), a trend similar to that of male mortalities. The overall pattern of road traffic fatalities was quite similar to those in other parts of India and the world. The global problem with regard to road traffic fatalities remains the same irrespective of the difference in topography and demography of the region.