The burden and trends of road injuries in Afghanistan (1990–2021): A joinpoint analysis of data from the global burden of diseases, 2021 study

Objective: Road injuries pose a major public health challenge, particularly in low-income, conflict-affected regions like Afghanistan. Despite issues like poor infrastructure and weak traffic regulations, no national study has assessed the road injury burden. This study examines Afghanistan's r...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Najeebullah Faizi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-06-01
Series:Preventive Medicine Reports
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211335525001007
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849716299961204736
author Najeebullah Faizi
author_facet Najeebullah Faizi
author_sort Najeebullah Faizi
collection DOAJ
description Objective: Road injuries pose a major public health challenge, particularly in low-income, conflict-affected regions like Afghanistan. Despite issues like poor infrastructure and weak traffic regulations, no national study has assessed the road injury burden. This study examines Afghanistan's road injury burden from 1990 to 2021. Method: This epidemiological study utilized the global burden of diseases (GBD) 2021 data. Key metrics included age-standardized mortality rate (ASMR), age-standardized disability-adjusted life-years rate (ASDR), years of life lost (YLL), and years lived with disability (YLD) per 100,000 population. Trends were analyzed using joinpoint analysis to determine annual and average annual percent changes (APC and AAPC). Estimates were presented with a 95 % uncertainty Interval, and statistical significance was assessed via permutation tests (p < 0.05). Results: Between 1990 and 2021, Afghanistan's road injury burden declined across all indicators (ASMR: -1.2 %, ASDR, YLL, YLD). Males (1.2 %) and children (AAPC: −3.1 %) saw the steepest declines, while the elderly (−0.7 %) had the slowest. Motor vehicle injuries dropped most (1.3 %), followed by pedestrian (1.0 %) and motorcyclist (0.9 %) injuries.Period-specific trends showed fluctuations: ASMR, ASDR, and YLL rose (1990–1997), then declined, except YLD, which increased post-2018 (+0.5 %). From 2017 to 2021, YLD rose across all age groups (except 0–14 years). Post-2014, motorcycle-related ASMR increased (+0.3 % APC), while from 2017 to 2021, ASDR and YLD increased across all injury types (+0.4 % to +1.3 % APC). Conclusion: Despite progress, rising DALYs and YLDs, especially from 2017 onward, highlight a growing disability road injury burden, necessitating targeted interventions to address long-term disability and mitigate its public health impact.
format Article
id doaj-art-893cd4c703474d34baabe27251c6b0bc
institution DOAJ
issn 2211-3355
language English
publishDate 2025-06-01
publisher Elsevier
record_format Article
series Preventive Medicine Reports
spelling doaj-art-893cd4c703474d34baabe27251c6b0bc2025-08-20T03:13:03ZengElsevierPreventive Medicine Reports2211-33552025-06-015410306110.1016/j.pmedr.2025.103061The burden and trends of road injuries in Afghanistan (1990–2021): A joinpoint analysis of data from the global burden of diseases, 2021 studyNajeebullah Faizi0Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, Xiangya School of Public Health, Central South University, Changsha, China; Department of Community Health, Kabul University of Medical Science “Abu Ali Ibn Sina”, Kabul, Afghanistan; Corresponding author at: Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, Xiangya School of Public Health, Central South University, Changsha, China and Department of Community Health, Kabul University of Medical Science “Abu Ali Ibn Sina”, Kabul, Afghanistan.Objective: Road injuries pose a major public health challenge, particularly in low-income, conflict-affected regions like Afghanistan. Despite issues like poor infrastructure and weak traffic regulations, no national study has assessed the road injury burden. This study examines Afghanistan's road injury burden from 1990 to 2021. Method: This epidemiological study utilized the global burden of diseases (GBD) 2021 data. Key metrics included age-standardized mortality rate (ASMR), age-standardized disability-adjusted life-years rate (ASDR), years of life lost (YLL), and years lived with disability (YLD) per 100,000 population. Trends were analyzed using joinpoint analysis to determine annual and average annual percent changes (APC and AAPC). Estimates were presented with a 95 % uncertainty Interval, and statistical significance was assessed via permutation tests (p < 0.05). Results: Between 1990 and 2021, Afghanistan's road injury burden declined across all indicators (ASMR: -1.2 %, ASDR, YLL, YLD). Males (1.2 %) and children (AAPC: −3.1 %) saw the steepest declines, while the elderly (−0.7 %) had the slowest. Motor vehicle injuries dropped most (1.3 %), followed by pedestrian (1.0 %) and motorcyclist (0.9 %) injuries.Period-specific trends showed fluctuations: ASMR, ASDR, and YLL rose (1990–1997), then declined, except YLD, which increased post-2018 (+0.5 %). From 2017 to 2021, YLD rose across all age groups (except 0–14 years). Post-2014, motorcycle-related ASMR increased (+0.3 % APC), while from 2017 to 2021, ASDR and YLD increased across all injury types (+0.4 % to +1.3 % APC). Conclusion: Despite progress, rising DALYs and YLDs, especially from 2017 onward, highlight a growing disability road injury burden, necessitating targeted interventions to address long-term disability and mitigate its public health impact.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211335525001007
spellingShingle Najeebullah Faizi
The burden and trends of road injuries in Afghanistan (1990–2021): A joinpoint analysis of data from the global burden of diseases, 2021 study
Preventive Medicine Reports
title The burden and trends of road injuries in Afghanistan (1990–2021): A joinpoint analysis of data from the global burden of diseases, 2021 study
title_full The burden and trends of road injuries in Afghanistan (1990–2021): A joinpoint analysis of data from the global burden of diseases, 2021 study
title_fullStr The burden and trends of road injuries in Afghanistan (1990–2021): A joinpoint analysis of data from the global burden of diseases, 2021 study
title_full_unstemmed The burden and trends of road injuries in Afghanistan (1990–2021): A joinpoint analysis of data from the global burden of diseases, 2021 study
title_short The burden and trends of road injuries in Afghanistan (1990–2021): A joinpoint analysis of data from the global burden of diseases, 2021 study
title_sort burden and trends of road injuries in afghanistan 1990 2021 a joinpoint analysis of data from the global burden of diseases 2021 study
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211335525001007
work_keys_str_mv AT najeebullahfaizi theburdenandtrendsofroadinjuriesinafghanistan19902021ajoinpointanalysisofdatafromtheglobalburdenofdiseases2021study
AT najeebullahfaizi burdenandtrendsofroadinjuriesinafghanistan19902021ajoinpointanalysisofdatafromtheglobalburdenofdiseases2021study