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9. Firearm Fatalities in Rural Setting: Autopsy Based Study at Tehsil Headquarter Hospital

1.   Altaf Pervez Qasim 2. Muhammad Ashraf Ali 3. Aslam Baig

 

1.  Assoc. Prof. of Forensic Medicine, PMC, Faisalabad 2, Assoc. Prof. of Forensic Medicine, QAMC, Bahawalpur 3 Senior Demonstrator, Deptt. of Forensic Medicine, QAMC, Bahawalpur

 

ABSTRACT

 

Objectives: Present study was conducted to find out the incidence, pattern and demographic characteristics of the victims died of firearm injuries brought for Medico legal Autopsy at Tehsil Headquarter Hospital located in the suburbs of Punjab, Pakistan and to study the parameters of age, gender, number and site of injuries on the body of those victims.

 

Study Design: Descriptive study

 

Place and Duration of Study: This study was carried out at Tehsil Headquarter Hospital Gojra, District Toba Tek Singh, Punjab Pakistan during the period of two years i.e. 1st January 2009 to 31st December, 2010.

 

Materials and Methods: All the victims of unnatural deaths brought for Medico legal Autopsy to Government Eye-cum General Hospital (Tehsil Headquarter Hospital) Gojra District Toba Tek Singh were studied in detail. The finding were tabulated, analyzed & compared with those of other studies conducted in different areas of Pakistan as well as other countries.

 

Results: Out of the total 110 unnatural deaths, 83 (75.45%) were males and 27 (24.55%) females. Sixty five victims

 

of age range 21-40 years constituted 59.09% of the death toll followed by 14 (12.73%) and 13 (11.82%) cases belonging to 2nd & 5th decades of life respectively. Firearms remained the m st common modality to kill 52 (47.27%) victims including 42 (80.77%) males and 10 (19.23%) females giving a male to female ratio of 4:1. Out of the total 52 victims of firearms, 67.30% belonged to rural areas while 32.70% were residents of suburbs. Thirty four victims of firearms, with the age range of 21-40 years constituted the death toll of 65.38%. The most common site of injury was neck & chest involving 57.70% victims. The fatal firearm injuries on the head were noted in 17.30% dead bodies whereas extremities were involved only n 7.70% ases.

 

Conclusion: The young males aged between 21-40 years were ommonly involved in the fatalities resulting from firearms in rural setting belonging to Tehsil Gojra of Pu jab. The situation is alarming & eye opener for the law enforcing agencies. To prevent such killings, there sh uld be combined effort from all sections of the society. Appropriate steps should be taken for cont l f the extremism, socio-economical development of the area & proper

 

employment facility for the youth. Conc e e eff  ts f r prevention need to be initiated through implementation of the

 

rule of law, strict control on the firearms, as well as education and awareness among rural / urban population. Key Words: Medico legal Autopsy, Firearms, Fatalities, Homicide, Postmortem Examination

 

Citation of article: Qasim AP, Ali MA, Baig A. Firearm Fatalities in Rural Setting: Autopsy Based Study at Tehsil Headquarter Hospital M d Forum 2016;27(3):31-35