Traffic injury prevention
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An earlier study reported that electronic stability control (ESC) in passenger vehicles reduced single-vehicle crash involvement risk by 41% and single-vehicle fatal crash involvement risk by 56%. The purpose of the present study was to update these effectiveness estimates using an additional year of crash data and a larger set of vehicle models. ⋯ The present study confirms the results of the earlier study. There are significant reductions in single-vehicle crash rates when passenger vehicles are equipped with ESC. In addition, ESC leads to reductions in severe multiple-vehicle crashes.
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Traffic injury prevention · Dec 2006
A cost-benefit analysis of risk-reduction strategies targeted at older drivers.
The risk of motor-vehicle collisions increases as driving-related functional abilities decline. These declines can accompany normal or pathological aging and can be identified through driving-related functional screening exams upon license renewal. The objective of this cost-benefit analysis was to determine the utility of four functional screening procedures used to identify drivers at risk for motor-vehicle collisions, as well as an intervention designed to maintain or improve functional abilities. Additionally, this study sought to determine the expected cost per driver if an intervention was designed to target only those drivers who failed the functional ability-based driving screen, versus the expected cost per driver if the intervention was distributed en masse to all drivers 75 years and older. Improving functional abilities in older adults has potential far-reaching health and financial impacts which are broader than their impact of maintaining mobility. ⋯ Screening drivers upon license renewal is not currently beneficial because the available technology cannot consistently identify drivers at risk for a collision. However, the speed-of-processing intervention has demonstrated efficacy in improving driving competence (Roenker et al., 2003) and is a non-invasive, moderate-cost intervention that has the potential to protect the safety and mobility, as well as the financial interests, of older drivers and the community at large.
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Motor vehicle collision (MVC)-related spinal injury is a severe and often permanently disabling injury. In addition, strain injuries have been reported as a common outcome of MVCs. Although advances in automobile crashworthiness have reduced both fatalities and severe injuries, the impact of varying occupant restraint systems (seatbelts and airbags) on thoracolumbar spine injuries is unknown. This study examined the relationship between the occurrence of mild to severe cervical and thoracolumbar spine injury and occupant restraint systems among front seat occupants involved in frontal MVCs. ⋯ The results of this study suggest that seatbelts alone or in combination with an airbag increased the incidence of AIS1 spinal injuries, but provide protection against more severe injury to all regions of the spine. Airbag deployment without seatbelt use did not show increased protection relative to unrestrained occupants.
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Traffic injury prevention · Jun 2006
Comment Review Comparative StudyCell phones and driving: review of research.
The research literature on drivers' use of cell phones was reviewed to identify trends in drivers' phone use and to determine the state of knowledge about the safety consequences of such use. ⋯ Even if total compliance with bans on drivers' hand-held cell phone use can be achieved, crash risk will remain to the extent that drivers continue to use or switch to hands-free phones. Although the enactment of laws limiting drivers' use of all phones is consistent with research findings, it is unclear how such laws could be enforced. At least in the short term, it appears that drivers' phone use will continue to increase, despite the growing evidence of the risk it creates. More effective countermeasures are needed but are not known at this time.
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Previous studies have indicated that unlicensed drivers are more likely to engage in risky driving behaviors, and are more likely than licensed drivers to be at fault and more seriously injured when involved in a crash. However, the prevalence of unlicensed drivers in the general driving population has not been measured, and the risk of an unlicensed driver being involved in an injury crash has not been quantified. We examined the association between unlicensed driving and car crash injury using data from a population-based case control study. ⋯ Unlicensed drivers are a high risk group for car crash injury after taking other crash-related risk factors into account. Strategies to reduce unlicensed driving may therefore facilitate reductions in road crashes, although further work is needed in this area.