• Francesca Cittadini, Giovanni Aulino, Martina Petrucci, Luigi Raguso, Elena Sofia Oliveri, Flavia Beccia, Angela Novelli, Sabina Strano-Rossi, Francesco Franceschi, and Marcello Covino.
• Section of Legal Medicine, Department of Health Surveillance and Bioethics, Fondazione Policlinico A. Gemelli IRCCS, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Roma, Italy.
• Injury. 2024 Apr 1; 55 (4): 111464111464.

IntroductionThis study aims to analyze the clinical characteristics, demographic features, and injury circumstances of patients admitted to the Emergency Department (ED) at Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli (IRCCS) in Rome, Italy, due to bicycle accidents.MethodsData on clinical characteristics, accident timing, injury circumstances, and helmet use were collected for ED patients involved in bicycle accidents from January 2019 to December 2022. Subsequently, Abbreviated Injury Scale codes of all diagnoses were recorded and the Injury Severity Score was calculated.ResultsOver the study period, 763 patients were admitted to the ED following bicycle accidents, with a 0.3 % fatality rate and a 30.4 % frequency of multitrauma. Multivariate analysis revealed that collisions with other vehicles increased trauma severity and the risk of ICU admission. Conversely, helmet use was associated with reduced severity of head trauma and a lower likelihood of ICU admission. Notably, toxicological investigations were not conducted for any ED-admitted patients.ConclusionsAlthough a low mortality rate and a low incidence of multi-trauma have been shown in comparison to other nations, it is necessary to adopt prevention strategies like safety devices, more cycle paths, and better infrastructures on the one hand, and stricter laws on the other. It is essential to require toxicological testing in Italy for all accidents involving this means of transport, and to make helmet use compulsory for all ages.Copyright © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

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