Motorcycle helmet effectiveness in reducing head, face and brain injuries by state and helmet law
| Autor: | Denise Yeager, Anna M. Gaichas, Michael Singleton, Tracy J. Smith, Gary A. Smith, Ming Qu, Andrea M. Thomas, Cynthia A. Burch, Lawrence J. Cook, Michael J. Bauer, Timothy J. Kerns, Cody S. Olsen, Justin Peng |
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| Rok vydání: | 2015 |
| Předmět: |
Legislation
Poison control Injury Crash Universal law Log-binomial regression Motorcycle helmet Occupational safety and health 03 medical and health sciences Traumatic brain injury 0302 clinical medicine Hospital charges 0502 economics and business Injury prevention Medicine 030212 general & internal medicine health care economics and organizations Charges 050210 logistics & transportation business.industry 05 social sciences Head injury Motor vehicle crash Human factors and ergonomics Original Contribution General Medicine Emergency department medicine.disease humanities Probabilistic linkage Law Motorcycle helmet law business human activities |
| Zdroj: | Injury Epidemiology |
| ISSN: | 2197-1714 |
| Popis: | Background Despite evidence that motorcycle helmets reduce morbidity and mortality, helmet laws and rates of helmet use vary by state in the U.S. Methods We pooled data from eleven states: five with universal laws requiring all motorcyclists to wear a helmet, and six with partial laws requiring only a subset of motorcyclists to wear a helmet. Data were combined in the Crash Outcome Data Evaluation System’s General Use Model and included motorcycle crash records probabilistically linked to emergency department and inpatient discharges for years 2005-2008. Medical outcomes were compared between partial and universal helmet law settings. We estimated adjusted relative risks (RR) and 95 % confidence intervals (CIs) for head, facial, traumatic brain, and moderate to severe head/facial injuries associated with helmet use within each helmet law setting using generalized log-binomial regression. Results Reported helmet use was higher in universal law states (88 % vs. 42 %). Median charges, adjusted for inflation and differences in state-incomes, were higher in partial law states (emergency department $1987 vs. $1443; inpatient $31,506 vs. $25,949). Injuries to the head and face, including traumatic brain injuries, were more common in partial law states. Effectiveness estimates of helmet use were higher in partial law states (adjusted-RR (CI) of head injury: 2.1 (1.9-2.2) partial law single vehicle; 1.4 (1.2, 1.6) universal law single vehicle; 1.8 (1.6-2.0) partial law multi-vehicle; 1.2 (1.1-1.4) universal law multi-vehicle). Conclusions Medical charges and rates of head, facial, and brain injuries among motorcyclists were lower in universal law states. Helmets were effective in reducing injury in both helmet law settings; lower effectiveness estimates were observed in universal law states. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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