International Journal of Injury Control and Safety Promotion最新文献

Road traffic fatalities remain a major public health challenge in low- and middle-income countries. Medellín, Colombia, implemented photodetection cameras between 2009 and 2011, with sanctioning measures starting in 2012. This study estimated the effect of this policy on road traffic mortality using anonymized mortality records and population estimates. Age- and sex-adjusted mortality rates from 1997 to 2011 were used to assess pre-intervention trends and select Cali as the comparator city. Difference-in-differences Poisson models were then estimated for 2007-2017. During the study period, 10,363 road traffic deaths occurred in Medellín and 10,607 in Cali. After adjustment, the final model estimated an 8% reduction in road traffic mortality in Medellín following photodetection implementation, with larger estimated reductions among men and individuals aged 15-44 years. Automated enforcement may contribute to injury prevention in urban settings with persistent road traffic mortality.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a major risk factor for depression. Using Global Burden of Disease (GBD) Study 2021, we assessed IPV-attributable depression burden among females aged 15-34 years across 204 countries and territories from 1990 to 2021. In 2021, the highest age-standardized DALY rates were observed in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, while Low SDI regions had the highest rate (48.85 per 100,000; 95% UI: 0.22-107.47). Globally, DALYs increased from 1.53 million in 1990 to 2.79 million in 2021, whereas the age-standardized DALY rate remained stable (EAPC = -0.08, 95% CI: -0.21 to 0.06). ARIMA and Holt's exponential smoothing models projected a continued increase in absolute DALYs among females through 2050. LMDI analysis identified population growth as the main contributor in Low SDI regions and epidemiological change as the main contributor in High SDI regions. Inequality analysis indicated widening socioeconomic disparities. These findings support targeted IPV prevention, resource allocation, and trauma-informed mental health services for females aged 15-34 years.

This narrative review examines the influence of helmet use on safety, comfort, cognition, and batting performance during cricket match play, with a view to proposing recommendations for design evolution and policy revision. The review involved an extensive exploration of leading databases, including Medline, SPORTDiscus, PubMed, and Scopus, covering the period from their inception to 30 December 2024. Findings confirm that helmets reduce head and facial injuries by attenuating impact forces, though visual obstruction and heat stress persist due to restricted airflow and faceguard design. Cognitive impacts vary: short-term use produces minimal effects on reaction time, whereas prolonged use may impair vigilance. Research on cardiovascular responses and repeated-sprint ability remains limited. The review concludes that helmets enhance safety but require better ventilation, fit, and adjustable faceguard gaps to balance protection and performance. Further studies on helmets' physiological and cognitive effects are needed to make cricket batting safer.

Road traffic injuries disproportionately affect low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Although traffic safety culture, social norms, and normalisation of deviance have received increasing attention, the processes through which cultural conditions may generate and reproduce road behaviour remain insufficiently integrated into dominant road safety frameworks. This paper proposes the Cultural Road Safety Model (CRSM), a preliminary conceptual framework for examining these processes. CRSM conceptualises the driver as a cultural agent and considers the cultural conditions underlying persistent unsafe practices. The framework draws on behavioural, criminological, organisational change, and relational perspectives, with ubuntu providing the philosophical foundation operationalised for this paper's Southern African context. It proposes a five-phase pathway comprising cultural diagnosis, policy alignment, community engagement, pilot implementation, and institutionalisation. Three propositions concerning diagnostic alignment, community anchoring, and cross-domain deviance are advanced for empirical testing. The proposed cultural dimensions offer further opportunities for empirical measurement. As a conceptual contribution, CRSM offers a theoretical foundation for future empirical validation and refinement.

This paper explores historical and contemporary intersections between mass-mortality epidemics and violent crime in South Africa, focusing on four major epidemics - Spanish Flu, tuberculosis, HIV, and Covid-19. The study integrates epidemiological data and contextual historical information such as crime statistics, archival records, and secondary scholarship to explore whether epidemic-driven mortality crises are associated with subsequent changes in violence and injury profiles. With the possible exception of gendered violence, the study finds little evidence that earlier epidemics directly contributed to rapid or sustained increases in violent crime, despite causing substantial adult mortality and long-term social and economic disruption. A comparison between epidemic and socio-economic profiles strongly suggests that the significant increases in violent crime recorded after the Covid-19 pandemic are highly localised, and may be more strongly related to lockdown responses, including alcohol restrictions, rather than the effects of disease itself.

The COVID-19 lockdown restrictions, while necessary to curb the spread of the virus, also led to the increase in gender-based violence (GBV) in many countries, including South Africa. Despite numerous studies on GBV, the voices of local community members, as key informants with situated knowledge, have largely been excluded. This study therefore explored community members' accounts of GBV during the COVID-19 lockdowns. Participants included men and women from an informal settlement in Johannesburg South. Three focus group discussions, each consisting of 12-13 participants, were undertaken to collect the data. The study used structural violence theory as well as Ubuntu feminism as a framing tool. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. The findings point to increased intra-familial violence, a deepening culture of silence around violence, escalating neglect within health and protection services, and the stifling of community activism. Participants also recounted feelings of helplessness in their efforts to mitigate GBV, alongside expressions of solidarity with survivors. Overall, the findings suggest that the COVID-19 lockdown restrictions unintentionally magnified existing drivers of GBV. We argue that future crisis responses -whether public health, social, or economic - must integrate violence prevention and protection mechanisms, ensuring that measures intended to safeguard populations do not simultaneously intensify gendered harm.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a major global public health concern and one of the most prevalent forms of gender-based violence, with significant consequences. This study analyzes non-lethal IPV cases reported to a medico-legal unit of Casablanca between 2018 and 2023. Data from 4,784 female victims were reviewed, focusing on socio-demographics, violence types, perpetrator relationships, and judicial involvement across the pre-COVID, peak COVID-19, and post-COVID periods. Married women represented 59.2% of victims. Physical violence predominated (83.1%), while sexual violence was underreported (14.7%). The year 2020 marked a sharp increase in reported non-lethal IPV cases (n = 1,005), correlating with pandemic confinement. Among married women, judicial requisition (legal request for forensic examination) and medico-legal certification (medical documentation for judicial use) rates were high (81.5% and 81.0%, respectively). Post-pandemic years declined moderately but remained above pre-COVID levels. International comparison confirmed a global rise in IPV during COVID-19, with Morocco displaying comparatively higher rates of medico-legal documentation and judicial involvement. IPV in Morocco is entrenched and intensified by COVID-19. While the medico-legal system is robust in documentation, the system must evolve by integrating systematic psychological assessment into medico-legal evaluations, standardizing certification and referral protocols, and strengthening coordination between medico-legal, health, and social support services to improve victim protection.

Suicide is a growing public health concern in South Africa, with rural provinces such as Limpopo facing heightened vulnerability due to limited mental health services and socio-economic inequalities. Evidence on the impact of COVID-19 on suicide in rural contexts remains limited. This study examined suicide trends in Limpopo Province and changes associated with the COVID-19 period. A retrospective interrupted time series analysis was conducted using forensic mortality data from 1 January 2019 to 31 December 2021, allowing assessment of pre-existing trends and changes following COVID-19 lockdowns. Among 5770 unnatural deaths, 957 were suicides. The proportion of suicides increased from 29.5% in 2019 to 36.9% in 2021. Suicides predominantly occurred among males and young adults, with hanging accounting for over 90% of deaths throughout. Interrupted time series analysis revealed a significant downward trend in suicide cases during the strict national lockdown (Alert Level 5), with a 31% reduction in incidence (IRR = 0.69, 95% CI: 0.49-0.98). Less restrictive lockdown levels showed no significant effects. Suicide mortality increased prior to COVID-19, with a subsequent decline during the strictest lockdown period. Stable demographic patterns and methods highlight persistent vulnerabilities and the need for sustained suicide-prevention strategies beyond pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic deepened the existing vulnerabilities marginalized South African communities face daily, and intensified risk factors for injury and violence while disrupting established prevention mechanisms. This paper will examine the transformative potential of networking, solidarity, and community activism spaces post-COVID in advancing violence prevention within the South African context, where communities continue to contend with structural disparities and enduring levels of interpersonal violence. Using a qualitative case study design, this study draws on individual interviews conducted in a local Western Cape community. Thematic analysis was employed. The findings illustrate how networking, solidarity-driven approaches and community activism spaces not only mitigated the immediate impacts of COVID-19 but also generated sustainable frameworks for community-led violence prevention. The findings call for a shift from top-down interventions to grounded, participatory, community-based strategies that position solidarity and collective agency as central to achieving safety, justice, and social transformation.

Road traffic significantly contributes to injury mortality in South Africa, with few descriptions of its impact on rural provinces like Limpopo. This study reports on the demographics and circumstances surrounding road traffic fatalities in Limpopo from 2019 to 2021, utilising mortuary-based data. A retrospective descriptive analysis was undertaken on data from five sentinel mortuaries in the five districts of Limpopo. Variables included age, sex, road user type, day and time of death, and incident location. Results were showcased through proportional analyses. Road traffic injuries accounted for 38.8% (n = 2,242) of non-natural mortality. Males constituted 77% (n = 1,733) of these fatalities, with the highest proportions among drivers (34.5%, n = 549) and individuals aged 15-39 years (60%, n = 1,034). A 19.7% decrease in mortality was observed in 2020, following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent restrictions, and a 24.9% increase in 2021 as restrictions lifted. Pedestrian mortality, however, increased with the onset of the pandemic. The trends of road traffic mortality in Limpopo highlight distinct patterns, underscoring the need for targeted, localised safety measures.