Road traffic injuries in Sharjah.

Hospital data of all patients seen as a result of road traffic accident injuries are presented for the year 1977. A follow-up study was carried out in December 1978 of those patients admitted with fractures of the skull and spine. The road traffic accident rate was 810 per 100 000 and the death rate was 25 per 100 000. All the deaths in hospitals were due to skull fractures. A third of those with cervical spine fractures were discharged with serious permanent disabilities. The problems of planning health services for this most unusual population are discussed.