Trend of mortality rate due to traffic accidents in Iran from 2006 to 2020: A cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND: Traffic accidents are a common global cause of mortality and physical disability. This study aimed to investigate traffic accident-related mortality trends across provinces in Iran. METHODS: In this study, information on all deaths caused by traffic accidents in Iran from 2006 to 2020 was collected from the Iranian Legal Medicine Organization, which collects annual data from all 31 Iranian provinces. The national and provincial demographics were assessed, and the trends in mortality rates were assessed over a 15-year span using joinpoint regression based on the log-linear model, with results expressed in terms of annual percentage change (APC). The analysis for the trend was performed using the Joinpoint Regression Program 4.9.0.1. RESULTS: During the study period, 291,774 traffic accident-related deaths occurred in Iran, of which 78.6% were men and 21.4% were women. The mean age of the deceased was 37.75 ± 20.89 years. The mortality rate has dropped from 39/100,000 in 2006 to 18.3/100,000 in 2020. In total, the national mortality rate APC for 2006–2015 was −6.3% (P < 0.05) and for 2015–2020 was − 1.70% (P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Despite the overall decreasing national trend in Iran’s traffic accident-related mortality over the study period, the provincial variability was noted. Therefore, it seems necessary to design and conduct epidemiological studies in different areas and provinces, for a better and more accurate understanding of the factors affecting the occurrence of traffic accident-related deaths, resulting in more focused and measurable interventions.