• Michał Szeremeta, Anna Niemcunowicz-Janica, Adam Sackiewicz, and Iwona Ptaszyńska-Sarosiek.
• Z Zakładu Medycyny Sadowej Uniwersytetu Medycznego w Białymstoku.
• Arch Med Sadowej Kryminol. 2009 Jul 1;59(3):172-6.

AbstractThe objective of the paper was an analysis of traffic accident fatalities in autopsy material collected at the Department of Forensic Medicine, Medical University of Białystok in the years 2007-2008. The analysis was carried out in 209 traffic accident victims included in the total number of 876 autopsies. Based on autopsy reports, the main criteria included gender, site of death (urban area, rural area, non-built-up), mode of movement (driver, passenger, pedestrian, biker and cyclist), age, location of fatal injuries (head, thorax, abdomen and pelvis, upper and lower limbs, multiorgan injuries) and blood alcohol level. The collected data were analyzed statistically according to the above listed criteria and presented as a text and graphs. In the years 2007-2008, 209 individuals died in traffic accidents in Podlasie Region, with the mortality rate of 24%. Male victims accounted for 76% of fatalities, while females constituted 24%. Drivers predominated among traffic accident fatalities in Podlasie Region, with the mortality rate of 38%. In the years 2007-2008, the mortality rates for pedestrians, passengers, motorbike drivers and bikers were 29%, 26% and 7%, respectively. Regardless of the time period, the fatalities were predominant in non-built-up areas, with the percentage amounting to 48.5%. The location of fatal injuries in respective groups was similar, with a preponderance of multiorgan injuries. The mean age of traffic accident fatalities was 41 years, predominantly due to an increasing number of fatal cases among young individuals. In the years 2007-2008, the percentage of traffic accident victims being under the influence of alcohol was 45% in males and 12% in females. The mean blood alcohol level of traffic accident victims was 2.1% per hundred in males and 1.6% per hundred in females.

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