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Morbidity and mortality in the wilderness
R Montalvo1, D L Wingard, M Bracker
1UCSD School of Medicine, USA.
The Western Journal of Medicine
|May 19, 1998
Summary
Wilderness injuries and illnesses are common, with most nonfatal events affecting the lower limbs. Heart disease, drowning, and falls were the leading causes of death in California
Area of Science:
- Wilderness medicine
- Public health
- Injury epidemiology
Background:
- Limited current data on wilderness morbidity and mortality.
- Existing studies focus on specific activities.
- Need for comprehensive statistics in natural environments.
Purpose of the Study:
- To retrospectively analyze wilderness injuries, illnesses, and mortality.
- To provide statistics for California National Park Service areas.
- To inform future wilderness management and safety protocols.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective review of case incident report files.
- Data collected from eight California National Park Service parks over three years.
- Extracted data included injury/illness type, body area, demographics, event timing, and activity.
Main Results:
- Nonfatal events occurred at 9.2 per 100,000 visits.
- Over 70% of nonfatal events were musculoskeletal or soft-tissue injuries.
- Lower limbs were the most affected body area (38%).
- 78 mortalities occurred (0.26 deaths per 100,000 visits).
- Men comprised 78% of fatalities.
- Leading causes of death: heart disease, drowning, and falls.
Conclusions:
- Provides crucial morbidity and mortality statistics for California wilderness areas.
- Findings can guide wilderness use, education, and management strategies.
- Recommends a standardized, computerized database for future research and policy.