Impact of violence by firearms on adolescent and young adults hospitalized in a referral hospital based in the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health

Abstract

The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) gathers health related information and allows identification of the impact over functionality in different clinical situations, such as those caused by firearms injuries. Objective: The objective of the study was to, per ICF, describe the impact of violence caused by firearms over hospitalized adolescents and young adults at a tertiary referral trauma hospital. Method: This is a descriptive, cross-sectional, quantitative study, conducted from June to December 2014, in Fortaleza-CE, Brazil. The sample consisted of 231 participants of both sexes, aging from 12 to 24 years. A reduced list of ICF scales were applied in two moments, at admission and at discharge. Results: At admission, the most compromised categories of Activity and Participation components were mobility (72.27%), interpersonal interactions and relationships (65.4%) and self-care (37.8%); Body component and respiratory functions were (26.71%), and sensory pain (25.35%), voice and speech (20.1%), mental (13.26%) and neuromusculoskeletal (11,04%). At discharge, the most altered categories of Activity and Participation component were interactions relationships (64.5%), mobility (36.79%) and self-care (29.29%). Regarding the Body Functions component, sensory functions and pain (23.38), voice and speech functions (16.8%), mental functions (13.26%), neuromusculoskeletal and movement-related functions (10.45%), and respiratory system (5.05%) were compromised. The categories related to mobility and respiratory system, were those with the highest percentages of improvement at discharge, whereas sensory functions and interpersonal interactions and relationships showed the lowest percentage of improvement. Conclusion: This classification made it possible to trace a functionality profile of these patients and to encode ICF information for detecting the risk of functional impairment at admission and discharge, what is decisive for the resolution of clinical related concerns.