Evolution of disability in victims of traffic accidents estimated from the application of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF)

INTRODUCTION: Each year, about 1.3 million deaths and 20-50 million injuries are due to traffic accidents, concentrated in the countries of middle and low income. Traffic accidents as a cause of morbidity and mortality have reached almost epidemic proportions in Brazil, but little is known about sequelae and disabilities resulting from them. The CIF enables monitoring of clinical status of the patient, at different times, which is possible due to the qualifiers that measure the magnitude of disability. The goal of this study was to apply the ICF to characterize the progression of physical disability in victims of traffic accidents. 

METHODS: It was conducted an exploratory case series study, prospective, with 68 victims of traffic accidents attended at a rehabilitation unit reference in Mato Grosso, Brazil in 2010. Data were obtained from physiotherapy assessment at two different times (first day of treatment and discharge), being coded according to the health dimensions of the ICF.

RESULTS: The average time between the evaluation and revaluation date was 76.4 days (SD = 23.6 days). More positive functional evolution occurred in the categories: muscle strength (41%), pain sensation (40%) and gait pattern (35%). At the first evaluation 63% of patients had severe or complete disability of joint mobility, whereas this percentage decreased to 23% at the revaluation. Regarding muscular strength, while severe and complete disability predominated at the evaluation (48%), over 50% showed mild disability or absence of it at the revaluation. There was a reduction (70%) in levels of severe and complete disabilities related to pain. There was also a reduction of deficiencies in the structure of the body, with 27% of patients without them.

CONCLUSIONS: The use of ICF allowed to qualify the information about physical disabilities, as well as to monitor the evolution of these victims, most of which showed improvement in functionality.