Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Dec;12(4):321-326.
doi: 10.1016/j.afjem.2022.06.011. Epub 2022 Jul 20.

Assessment of substance use among injured persons seeking emergency care in Nairobi, Kenya

J Austin Lee  1 , Eric O Ochola  2 , Janet Sugut  3 , Beatrice Ngila  4 , Daniel K Ojuka  5 , Michael J Mello  1 , Adam R Aluisio  1
Affiliations

Assessment of substance use among injured persons seeking emergency care in Nairobi, Kenya

J Austin Lee et al. Afr J Emerg Med. 2022 Dec.

Abstract

Introduction: Trauma is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in Kenya. In many countries, substance use is common among patients presenting with injuries to an emergency center (EC).

Objective: To describe the epidemiology of self-reported substance use among adult injured patients seeking ED care in Nairobi, Kenya.

Methods: This prospective cross-sectional study, assessed patients presenting with injuries to the Kenyatta National Hospital ED in Nairobi, Kenya from March through June of 2021. Data on substance use, injury characteristics and ED disposition were collected. Substances of interest were alcohol, stimulants, marijuana, and opiates. The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test-Concise (AUDIT-C) tool was used to characterize hazardous alcohol use.

Results: A total of 1,282 patients were screened for participation, of which 646 were enrolled. Among participants, 322 (49.8%) reported substance use in the past month (AUDIT-C positive, stimulants, opiates, and/or marijuana). Hazardous alcohol use was reported by 271 (42.0%) patients who screened positive with AUDIT-C. Polysubstance use, (≥2 substances) was reported by 87 participants in the past month. Median time from injury to ED arrival was 13.1 h for all enrolees, and this number was significantly higher among substance users (median 15.4 h, IQR 5.5 - 25.5; p = 0.029).

Conclusions: In the population studied, reported substance use was common with a substantial proportion of injured persons screening positive for hazardous alcohol use. Those with substance use had later presentations for injury care. These data suggest that ED programming for substance use disorder screening and care linkage could be impactful in the study setting.

Keywords: Alcohol; Injury; Kenya; Social determinants of health; Substance use; Trauma.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Fig.. 1
Fig. 1
Patient enrolment.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Abdur-Rahman L.O., van As A.B., Rode H. Pediatric trauma care in Africa: the evolution and challenges. Semin Pediatr Surg. 2012;21(2):111–115. Sebastian. - PubMed
    1. Lee J.A., Wanjiku G., Nduku N., Aluisio A.R., Kharel R., Simiyu J.T., et al. The status and future of emergency care in the Republic of Kenya. Afr J Emerg Med. 2022;12(1):48–52. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Janeway H., O'Reilly G., Schmachtenberg F., Kharva N., Wachira B. Characterizing injury at a tertiary referral hospital in Kenya. PLoS ONE. 2019;14(7) - PMC - PubMed
    1. Gathecha G.K., Githinji W.M., Maina A.K. Demographic profile and pattern of fatal injuries in Nairobi, Kenya, January–June 2014. BMC Public Health. 2017;17(1):34. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Patel H., Suarez S., Shaull L., Edwards J., Altawil Z., Owuor J., et al. Patient characteristics from an emergency care center in rural Western Kenya. J Emerg Med. 2019;56(1):80–86. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources