A survey of cutlass ("Collins") injuries seen in the emergency department of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Barbados

ABSTRACT

For the period March to November 1998 inclusive, a prospective survey was conducted of all patients who sustained injuries with a cutlass or machete and were admitted to the Accident and Emergency Department of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. Of the 77 patient admissions, 81 (62/77) were male. The average age was 28.8 years (range 8 to 73 years; standard deviation 13.1). Twenty-two per cent of the patients were less than 20 years old. The most common locations of the lacerations were upper extremity (59 lacerations) and scalp (16 lacerations). Thirty-four per cent of the patients (26/77) sustained lacerations to two or more anatomical locations. There were 23 fractures in 21 patients; skull fractures were the most common fractures (11). Of the 63 patients who responded to the question on whether they knew the identity of their assailants, 51 reported that they were attacked by someone known to them; eight were assaulted by a spouse or known family member. Eighty-six per cent of patients (66/77) were treated in the emergency room and discharged. Of the 11 patients admitted, eight required treatment in the operating theatre. The average length of stay was 3.6 days. There were no amputations or deaths. One patient sustained loss of vision in one eye. In Barbados, most victims of cutlass injuries are males who know their assailants and the morbidity is most often related to head injuries and to short-term physical disability due especially to lacerations of the hand and forearm.