Epidemiological and post-injury psychological characteristics of fracture cases among elementary and middle school students in Shenzhen,China

Objective To examine characteristics of fracture incidence and mental profile of fracture cases among elementary and middle school students in Shenzhen city and to provide references for fracture control and prevention.Methods Data on fracture incidents reported from September 2013 through June 2015 among primary and middle school students were extracted from Shenzhen Municipal School Health Surveillance Information System and a face-to-face interview was conducted among the fracture cases recruited with a self-designed questionnaire.Results A total of 426 fracture incidents were reported among the students covered by the surveillance system during the period,with an incidence rate of 7.9‰.Of the fracture cases reported,81.9% were boys and only 18.1% were girls and 46.5% were middle school students.Of all the fractures,31.7% were related to playing and 23.5% to playing football or basketball.Nearly a half (49.1%) of the reported fractures occurred in playgrounds and the top two body parts were wrist (28.2%) and forearm (24.6%).Among the students with fracture,the proportions reporting psychological problems after the injury were 21.5% for anxiety/stress,14.8% for being distressed,16.0% for regret,10.5% for sadness,and 2.6% for insomnia,respectively.Conclusion Specific health education and intervention measures on fracture prevention should be implemented among primary and middle school students with different features.