Traffic injury prevention
-
Traffic injury prevention · Jan 2015
Epidemiology and patterns of transport-related fatalities in Austria 1980-2012.
Transport-related accidents remain the largest single cause of death among people aged 15 to 29 in the European Union, and despite the decrease in number of fatalities from 1990 onwards they remain a significant public health problem. The aim of this article was to analyze the long-term trends and patterns of transport-related fatalities, identify the anatomic distribution of most significant injuries in different road users, and identify the primary populations at risk of transport-related death in Austria between 1980 and 2013. ⋯ Despite the decreasing trend observed, transport-related fatalities remain a serious public health issue in Austria. An increase in the mortality of motor vehicle drivers warrants more preventive action in this group. Further research is needed on other outcomes of transport accidents such as long-term disabilities to elucidate the true public health burden of transport accidents.
-
Traffic injury prevention · Jan 2015
Comparative StudyComparative analysis of risky behaviors of electric bicycles at signalized intersections.
The primary objective of this study was to compare the risky behaviors of e-bike, e-scooter, and bicycle riders as they were crossing signalized intersections. ⋯ Compared to e-bike and bicycle riders, e-scooter riders are more likely to take risky behaviors. More specifically, they are more likely to ride in motorized lanes and ride against traffic.
-
Traffic injury prevention · Jan 2015
Finite element model prediction of pulmonary contusion in vehicle-to-vehicle simulations of real-world crashes.
Pulmonary contusion (PC) is a common chest injury following motor vehicle crash (MVC). Because this injury has an inflammatory component, studying PC in living subjects is essential. Medical and vehicle data from the Crash Injury Research and Engineering Network (CIREN) database were utilized to examine pulmonary contusion in case occupants with known crash parameters. ⋯ A preliminary threshold for maximum crush was calculated to predict a clinically significant volume of pulmonary contusion.
-
Vehicle change in velocity (delta-v) is a widely used crash severity metric used to estimate occupant injury risk. Despite its widespread use, delta-v has several limitations. Of most concern, delta-v is a vehicle-based metric which does not consider the crash pulse or the performance of occupant restraints, e.g. seatbelts and airbags. Such criticisms have prompted the search for alternative impact severity metrics based upon vehicle kinematics. The purpose of this study was to assess the ability of the occupant impact velocity (OIV), acceleration severity index (ASI), vehicle pulse index (VPI), and maximum delta-v (delta-v) to predict serious injury in real world crashes. ⋯ The broad findings of this study suggest it is feasible to improve injury prediction if we consider adding restraint performance to classic measures, e.g. delta-v. Applications, such as advanced automatic crash notification, should consider the use of different metrics for belted versus unbelted occupants.
-
Traffic injury prevention · Jan 2015
Lumbar Bone Mineral Density Phantomless Computed Tomography Measurements and Correlation with Age and Fracture Incidence.
Low bone quality is a contributing factor to motor vehicle crash (MVC) injury. Quantification of occupant bone mineral density (BMD) is important from an injury causation standpoint. The first aim of this study was to validate a technique for measuring lumbar volumetric BMD (vBMD) from phantomless computed tomography (CT) scans. The second aim was to apply the validated phantomless technique to quantify lumbar vBMD in Crash Injury Research and Engineering Network (CIREN) occupants for correlation with age, fracture incidence, and osteopenia/osteoporosis diagnoses. ⋯ Because lumbar vBMD was estimated from phantomless CT scans with accuracy similar to qCT, the phantomless technique can be broadly applied to both prospectively and retrospectively assess patient bone quality for research and clinical studies related to MVCs, falls, and aging.