Burden of deaths from road traffic injuries in children aged 0-14 years in Turkey

Background: Childhood road traffic injuries (RTIs) are a major public health problem worldwide. Reliable and valid information on childhood RTIs is essential to reduce the number of deaths. Aims: To determine the burden of deaths from RTIs in children aged 0-14 years from 2006 to 2019 in Turkey. Methods: This descriptive study examined the change in road traffic fatalities in children according to age, gender, road user type, and place. The necessary data for this study were obtained from the Turkish Statistical Institute. We used Microsoft Excel to analyse data from 4614 children who died from RTIs in 2006-2019 in Turkey. Results: The fatality rate from RTIs per 100 000 children aged 0-14 years increased from 1.41 in 2006 to 2.13 in 2019. The fatality rate for boys aged 0-9 and 10-14 years was higher than that for girls of the same age. The fatality rate for girls aged 0-9 years was higher than that for girls aged 10-14 years. The fatality rate for boys aged 10-14 years was higher than that for boys aged 0-9 years. Among the children who died from RTIs, 6.65% were drivers, 41.31% pedestrians and 52.04% passengers. Children lost their lives mostly as pedestrians on urban roads and as passengers on rural roads. Conclusion: The death of children due to RTIs is a significant health burden in Turkey.