Emergency room visits for work-related injuries: characteristics and associated factors - capitals and the Federal District, Brazil, 2011

Work-related injuries, often classified as occupational injuries (OI), stand out among visits due to external causes (accidents and violence) in health services. To describe the characteristics and factors associated with emergency room visits for OI, a cross-sectional study was conducted using data from the Survey of Violence and Injuries in Emergency Services (VIVA Inquérito 2011) in 24 state capitals and the Federal District. The prevalence of treatment for OI and prevalence ratios (PR) with confidence intervals of 95% (95%CI) were calculated. There were 29,463 emergency room visits due to accidental injuries in the population above 18 years of age. The prevalence of OI was 33.4% and was positively and significantly associated with the male gender, age 30-59 years old, industrial workers, agricultural sector or repair and maintenance services. The occurrence of OI was significantly higher in attendance for objects falling on people (PR = 3.37, 95% CI 2.80 to 4.05) and injuries due to perforating object (PR = 3.01, 95% CI 2.50-3.65). The results support the surveillance of external causes and direct public policies to promote occupational health.