Accident; analysis and prevention
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Subjective ratings of fatigue are increasingly being used as part of a suite of tools to assess fatigue-related risk on the road and in the workplace. There is some debate however, as to whether individuals can accurately gauge their own fatigue states, particularly under conditions of sleep restriction. It is also unclear which references are used by individuals to assess fatigue - for example prior sleep, time of day, workload, or previous ratings. ⋯ The significant effect of study day is interpreted as an effect of circadian time, as opposed to accumulating sleep debt. An effect of sleep dose was only seen in post-sleep fatigue ratings. The findings suggest that post-sleep fatigue ratings may be sensitive to prior sleep and may be useful as an indicator of fatigue-related risk, particularly when triangulated with information about recent total sleep time.
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Cycling is becoming an increasingly important transportation option for commuters. Cycling offers exercise opportunities and reduces the burden of motor vehicle travel on society. Mapping the risk of collision between cyclists and motor vehicles in urban areas is important to understanding safe cyclist route opportunities, making informed transportation planning decisions, and exploring patterns of injury epidemiology. ⋯ Instead, risk is either expressed as a rate per capita, or as a count of events. Using data associated with the City of Hamilton, Canada, we illustrate a method for mapping commuter cyclist collision risk per distance travelled. This measure can be used to more realistically represent the underlying geography of cycling risk, and provide more geographically and empirically meaningful information to those interested in understanding how cycling safety varies over space.
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The aim of this study was to examine different socio-demographic, health and safety-related factors, and psychoactive substance use among fatally injured drivers in road traffic accidents in Finland during 2006-2008. ⋯ Substance abuse and mental health problems, as well as reckless driving behavior were more pronounced among fatally injured drivers with substance findings when compared to sober drivers. Thus, prevention and early intervention concerning substance abuse, mental health problems and DUI are essential. Improved traffic safety cannot be achieved by means of traffic policy only, but integration with other policies, such as health and social policy should be strengthened.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Distraction and pedestrian safety: how talking on the phone, texting, and listening to music impact crossing the street.
As use of handheld multimedia devices has exploded globally, safety experts have begun to consider the impact of distraction while talking, text-messaging, or listening to music on traffic safety. This study was designed to test how talking on the phone, texting, and listening to music may influence pedestrian safety. 138 college students crossed an interactive, semi-immersive virtual pedestrian street. They were randomly assigned to one of four groups: crossing while talking on the phone, crossing while texting, crossing while listening to a personal music device, or crossing while undistracted. ⋯ Distraction from multimedia devices has a small but meaningful impact on college students' pedestrian safety. Future research should consider the cognitive demands of pedestrian safety, and how those processes may be impacted by distraction. Policymakers might consider ways to protect distracted pedestrians from harm and to reduce the number of individuals crossing streets while distracted.
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Review
Systematic review and quality assessment of economic evaluation studies of injury prevention.
To review and assess the quality of economic evaluation studies on injury prevention measures. ⋯ This review has shown that approaches to economic evaluation of injury prevention vary widely and most studies do not fulfill methodological rigour. Improving quality and harmonization of economic evaluation studies in the field of injury prevention is needed. One way of achieving this would be to establish international guidelines on economic evaluation for injury prevention interventions, based on established economic evaluation checklists, to assist researchers in the design and reporting of economic evaluations.