Road traffic accidents in hilly regions of northern India:What has to be done?

BACKGROUND: Road traffic accidents (RTA) are responsible for 1.2 million deaths worldwide each year. RTA will become the 3rd largest contributor to the global burden of diseases after ischemic heart diseases (IHD) and depression. We conducted a retrospective study on RTA in a tertiary center in the hilly district of Uttarakhand in India. METHODS: The number of RTA, pattern of RTA, the number of patients killed and injured, the pattern of injury causing death and disability, the severity of accidents, and the type of disability were noted from December 2009 to November 2011. The accident severity was calculated as the number of patients killed per 100 accidents. The methods for reducing the incidence of RTA were observed, and the role of policy makers was studied. RESULTS: The majority of deaths and disabilities in Uttarakhand were due to road traffic accidents in the hilly districts of the states. The most common cause of RTA was driving fault followed by defective roads. CONCLUSION: Proper designing of roads and minimizing the fault of drivers are essential to prevent road traffic accidents in hilly regions.