• Jeffrey R Brubacher, Herbert Chan, Elizabeth Purssell, Benjamin J Tuyp, Daniel K Ting, and Vahid Mehrnoush.
• Department of Emergency Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
• J Emerg Med. 2017 May 1; 52 (5): 632-638.

BackgroundThe majority of crashes cause "minor" injuries (i.e., treated and released from the emergency department [ED]). Minor injury crashes are poorly studied.ObjectivesThis study aims to determine the prevalence of driver-related risk factors and subsequent outcome in drivers involved in minor crashes.MethodsWe interviewed a convenience sample of injured drivers, aged over 17 years, who were treated and released from the ED. Follow-up interviews were conducted 6 months after the crash.ResultsWe approached 123 injured drivers; baseline interviews were completed in 69 and follow-up interviews in 45. Prior to the index crash, 1.4% of drivers drank alcohol, 1.4% used illicit drugs, and 7.2% used sedating prescription medications. Nine drivers (13%) were distracted. In this sample, 5.8% met criteria for being aggressive drivers, 7.2% were risky drivers, and 11.6% drove while experiencing negative emotions. At 6-month follow-up, many drivers were still having health problems, 53.3% were not fully recovered, 46.7% had not returned to usual activities, and 28.9% were off work. Of the 42 participants who resumed driving, 16.7% had a near miss and 4.8% had another crash. Nine (21.4%) reported drinking and driving, and 9.5% reported driving after cannabis use. Cell phone use (16.7%) and use of other electronics while driving (23.8%) were also common.ConclusionsDriver-related risk factors are common in drivers involved in minor injury crashes, and drivers persist in taking risks after being involved in a crash. Despite their name, minor injury crashes are often associated with slow recovery and prolonged absenteeism from work.Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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