A RETROSPECTIVE STUDY OF DEATHS AMONG PARTICIPANTS IN THE LIQUIDATION OF THE CONSEQUENCES OF THE ACCIDENT AT THE CHORNOBYL NPP DUE TO INJURY, POISONING AND CERTAIN OTHER CONSEQUENCES OF EXTERNAL CAUSES (2000–2020)
Authors:   State Institution «National Research Center for Radiation Medicine, Hematology and Oncology of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine», Gunko N. V. , Fedirko P. A. ,   State Institution «National Research Center for Radiation Medicine, Hematology and Oncology of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine», Tereshchenko S. A. ,   State Institution «Ukrainian Center for Information Technologies and National Registry» of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, Korotkova N. V. ,   State Institution «National Research Center for Radiation Medicine, Hematology and Oncology of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine», Kortushin G. I. ,   State Institution «Ukrainian Center for Information Technologies and National Registry» of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, Gubina I. G. ,   State Institution «Ukrainian Center for Information Technologies and National Registry» of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, Dubova O. S. ,   State Institution «National Research Center for Radiation Medicine, Hematology and Oncology of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine»
Published: December 2024

Objective: To assess the dynamics of changes in the number of deaths due to injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes and their structure among liquidators of the accident at the Chornobyl NPP (PACL) on the basis of the data of Ukraine’s State Register of Persons Affected by the Chornobyl Disaster (SRU) for 2000-2020.
Materials and methods. The study used information resources of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine for 2000–2020 regarding deaths among the PACL – databases of the SRU as a basis for monitoring their health status. Depersonalised information was selected for 2000–2020 regarding 5,124 deaths from injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes (ICD codes S00–T98) among the PACL, who were monitored in healthcare facilities of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine. General scientific, demographic, mathematical and statistical, graphical, software and technological study methods and documentary analysis were used.
Results. 5,124 deaths as a result of injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes in the PACL which were recorded with the SRU for 2000–2020 were retrospectively studied. Significant variations in changes in figures were found both between territories and by years of observation. It is shown that the age of the PACL at the time of death ranged from 32 to 92 years. The greatest losses during the period of observation were at the age of 49 and 51 years. In the dynamics of observation, the mean age of death due to external causes is gradually increasing from 45.2 (2000) to 64.3 years (2020), which is associated with the aging of the cohort. But the mean age of death for the study cohort for 2000–2020 was 54 years, which is the evidence of a significant number of premature deaths. The analysis of the structure of deaths in the PACL from injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes in 2000–2020 showed the prevalence of deaths from asphyxiation (an ICD code Т71) – 952 cases or 18.6 %, the toxic effect of alcohol (an ICD code T-51), 941 and 18.5 %, respectively, injuries to the head (ICD codes S00–S09) 917 and 17.9 %, respectively.
Conclusions. The study proved that a trend towards the decrease in the number of deaths from injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes, which is common for the population of Ukraine, is also observed among the PACL. However, issues with respect to prevention of deaths among the PACL from injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes still remain topical, it especially concerns deaths due to asphyxiation and the toxic effect of alcohol.
Key words: deaths from injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes; structure by separate causes of death; participants in liquidation of the consequences of the accident at the Chornobyl NPP.