Comprehensive analysis of injuries sustained by victims of assault coming to the casualty of a Tertiary Care Hospital, Chandigarh.

Introduction: Violence, due to assaults is now being described as a major public health issue. This study concentrates on the injuries sustained by victims of assault, coming to the Emergency Department of a Tertiary Care Hospital so as to gather and compile data regarding the burden of assault cases in this region. Aim: Comprehensive analysis of injuries sustained by the victims of assault, coming to the casualty of a tertiary care hospital. Materials and Method: This was a study of 400 consecutive assault cases coming to the casualty of Government Medical Collage and Hospital, Chandigarh, during the period June 2021 to September 2021. Afore mentioned data was compiled, analysed and results drawn. Results: Of the 400 cases studied, 78.8% were males. Majority of the victims belonged to the age group of 21-30 years, 35.8%; urban victims comprised 72.5%. Majority of the patients were married, 76%. Most of the patients were accompanied by their relatives, 44%. Majority of the incidents occurred at or near the residence of the victims, 56.5%, at evening to midnight, 52%. Revenge, 35% was the main reason of assault. In 65.5% cases, assailants were known. Head and face was the commonest site of injury 60.6%, followed by upper limb, 23.5%. Commonest injuries were lacerations, 40.8%, followed by abrasions, 28.1%. Five hundred fifty five injuries were simple in nature, while 65 were grievous. Conclusion: The increasing incidence and frequency of assault cases is adding further burden to the medico-legal workload of the tertiary care hospitals and justifies the need for appointing medico-legal experts at primary and secondary health care centers to deal effectively with such cases so as to reduce this burden at the ever busy tertiary care centers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]