WeeklySA_AdminReduce: The use of seat belts reduces the risk of fatal injuries by nearly 50 percent for drivers and passengers
By Thuli Zungu
Eighty percent of children who sustain severe head injuries in car accidents had not been restrained to a seat belt, according to data from the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital.
As a result, a child is eight times more likely to die in South Africa than in the United Kingdom and 10 times more at risk of death than a child in Switzerland.
“Yet, this is the single-most preventable cause of death and disability in South Africa,” says Professor Anthony Figaji, who heads the Paediatric Neurosurgery Unit at the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital and the African Brain Child Initiative at the University of Cape Town, the leading research unit into traumatic brain injury in children in sub-Saharan Africa.
“The evidence around the efficacy of seat belts is abundant. Trauma kills more children than cancer, and yet, unlike cancer, it is preventable,” says Figaji. who is driving a public awareness campaign with authorities and the community, to get children to ‘Be Quick to Click’ and buckle up seat belts. evidence society can indeed be mobilised,” says Figaji.
Data from the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital showed that 80% of children presenting with severe head injuries – in a coma or on life support – were injured in a motor vehicle accident. Research has shown that 96 percent of children admitted to hospitals following severe motor accidents as passengers, had not been restrained by a seat belt or car seat.
“We need to enforce fear of the consequences for not wearing a seat belt in the same way we approach drunken driving,” says Figaji.
South African regulations state that all adults must use seat belts if available; the driver must ensure a child aged between three to 14 uses a child restraint or seat belt if available; and infants under three years old must be strapped into a car seat where possible.
“We have seen the human cost of motor vehicle accidents and TBI in children we have not been able to save. We have also seen those we have been able to save, but whose lives have been permanently impacted by injury that is readily preventable with the click of a buckle. There is an African saying that; ‘It takes a village to raise a child’. It also takes one to protect it. We need to rally personal responsibility around seatbelt usage – together as society.”
The use of a seat belt reduces the risk of fatal injury by 40 – 50% for drivers and front-seat occupants, and by up to 25% for rear-seat occupants, according to the World Health Organisation .
Figaji says the epidemic extent of TBI and its impact on children became starkly apparent during the Covid 19 national lockdown when data showed a substantial decrease in children presenting with TBI to the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital during a time when people were forcibly kept off the roads.
“We have seen the human cost of motor vehicle accidents and TBI in children we have not been able to save, and in those we have been able to save but whose lives have been permanently impacted by injury that is readily preventable with the click of a buckle,” says Figaji.
Children who are the most vulnerable cohort the global average. This is particularly notable for children from lower income households, for whom disability following TBI only serves to increase their disadvantages in life.
An unrestrained child, due to their smaller size, is likely to be catapulted from a vehicle on impact, increasing risk of death or disability. In addition, the developing brain is more at risk and less protected than the adult brain.
Most children who survive a serious TBI are left with some form of neurological disability, behavioural disorder and or learning deficit, which can have a wide ranging impact on a young life, from difficulty with schooling and coordination, to full blown disability, where the child is bedridden in a vegetative state, unable to interact with the environment or those around them or to fulfil daily functions such as washing or eating.
Figaji called for more stringent policing of safety belt usage. “It is argued that we live in a society where seat belt usage cannot be policed, but during Covid19 lockdown, people were being arrested for walking on the beach.
We need to rally personal responsibility around seat belt usage.” TBI is referred to as a silent killer, because despite the staggering burden of injury on our healthcare systems in terms of premature death and disability, it remains overlooked and under-funded in the healthcare system.
Figaji and his fellow medical and research team members under the umbrella body of the African Brain Child Initiative, are calling on the public and authorities to take personal responsibility for buckling up our children as the evidence is strong and the relative value substantial for the small act of buckling up.
- Injury causes 40% more deaths than HIV/ Aids, TB and malaria combined, and accounts for 60% of all childhood deaths in the US, a figure that morphs ever higher in low-income societies.
DOCTORS MUST LEAD DRIVE TO RAISE AWARENESS AROUND INFERTILITY ISSUES
Risk: Smoking, alcohol abuse and being overweight can place men at a greater risk of infertility
By Thuli Zungu
The inability to conceive can be heartbreaking for couples whose hearts are set on starting a family. It is also understandable why infertility is hardly ever discussed outside of the hush of a medical doctor’s office.
While infertility does not get much publicity, awareness is even lower when it comes to the topic of male infertility. Dr Bradley Wagemaker, Medical Director at Lamelle Pharmaceuticals, says often overlooked and shrouded by misconceptions and stigma, male infertility is more common than people think. According to the National Institute of Health, male infertility is solely the cause of 20 -30% of infertility cases and is a contributing factor in 50% of cases overall.
“The medical community in particular must take greater initiative in driving awareness of these realities. It is our collective responsibility to share this information far and wide and highlight the fact that infertility is not just a woman’s problem as it is often stereotypically touted, but a shared responsibility by both men and women, and needs to be diagnosed and treated as such,” says Wagemaker.
Since driving awareness and warding off the stigma starts with education, it is important that people understand the factors that contribute towards male infertility and the treatment options available for men.
Wagemaker says there are a number of reasons for male infertility. Men can be biologically predisposed to this order and inherit it in their blood line or it could come out as a result of hormonal imbalances, dilated veins around the testicles or a condition called Ejaculatory Obstruction that blocks the sperm from leaving the body.
‘’ Some of the signs and symptoms men and their partners would likely notice include erectile dysfunction and a lack of sexual desire , pain and swelling in the testicular area, a decrease in facial and body hair and low sperm count.’’
Certain medical treatments and existing conditions can also cause infertility in men such as varicocele ( when the veins that drain the testicle are swollen), infections, undescended testicles, hormonal imbalances and chromosome defects, to name but a few. ‘’Smoking , the use of alcohol, substance abuse and being overweight also place men at greater risk of infertility.’’
Infertility, Wagemaker says, is not a straightforward condition to diagnose and typically, requires an evaluation of many factors – medical history, lifestyle, semen analysis, hormone testing , along with considering the contributing factors of infertility in the female counterpart, being among the main areas that a doctor would look into.
A treatment plan can then be discussed based on the outcomes of this as well as a thorough physical examination and extensive bloodwork. Infertility treatments are typically quite expensive. That is why many doctors will often go for the ‘ low-hanging fruit’ first.
‘’Lifestyle modifications are the first point of call: Quit smoking, substance abuse and other unhealthy habits, cutting down on excessive drinking is a major priority in this regard. Getting weight under control within healthy parameters is also of utmost importance , which means ditching junk food for healthier , nutritious alternatives and engaging in moderate to intense physical activity for at least 150 minutes a week.’’ Male infertility supplements can also support this journey and help treat challenges such as low sexual drive and insufficient libido in the process. A key ingredient in Lamelle Prelox Fertility, for instance, is a compound called ‘L- Arginine Mono HCL’ which is a precursor for nitric oxide, a key element in blood vessel dilation which improves the blood flow to the penis to help men maintain erection.
Wagemaker says studies have shown significant improvement in sperm mobility when L-Arginine Mono HCL is combined with Pycnogenol, a compound used for treating circulation problems among other medical conditions. Improved blood flow also leads to improved sperm mobility and concentration, giving couples a much higher chance of conceiving and giving birth.
“In addition to being clinically proven to provide improved results, Prelox is available over the counter, making it easily accessible as a starting point in treating the signs and symptoms of male infertility, and has no side effect profile.”
A doctor will be able to advise on further treatment strategies where necessary, but the resounding message that both men and their partners should take away from this is that male infertility in many cases is treatable and they do not have to give up on their dreams of having biological children of their own.
“Most importantly, there is no shame in male infertility, and equally as important to note is that there is no reason that the burden and blame of infertility should fall on a women’s shoulders alone.
