Traumatic Injuries Among University Students in Finland

Abstract

A questionnaire dealing with the incidence of traumatic injuries was sent to 1,000 randomly selected 3rd-year university students in Finland; 617 students responded adequately. Of those, 177 (28.7%) reported a combined total of 281 accidents and 323 separate injuries requiring medical or dental treatment during the preceding 3 years. The accidents resulted in 1,061 days of official sick leave, and one third of the accidents caused permanent sequelae to the affected students. Almost half of all accidents had been sustained during sports activities and 14% in traffic. Only 0.5% of the accidents were classified as having occurred in the university environment or during activities directly related to studies. Alcohol was involved in 10.1% of the accidents; 45% of the injuries affected the lower extremities, and 22% the upper extremities. Most of the injuries were related to the students' active lifestyles and keen interest in sports.

Key Words:

• injuries
• trauma
• university students

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Ville Laaka

All of the authors are with the Finnish Student Health Service in Helsinki, where Juha Sane is an oral surgeon; Pekka Ylipaavalniemi is an oral surgeon and associate professor in the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Helsinki; Lauri Turtola is the chief dentist; Timo Niemi is the chief psychiatrist; and Ville Laaka is the chief physician.