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Biomedical subjects

P Zador

Publications and source records attributed to P Zador.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

Motor vehicle crash injury patterns and the Virginia seat belt law.

Injuries to front seat occupants in tow-away crashes in the Charlottesville, Va, area were compared for 1 year before and 1 year after Virginia's seat belt use law took effect. Vehicle and occupant data were combined to examine crash and injury patterns. Reported seat belt use in crashes increased after the law, and there were substantial decreases in injuries. Front seat occupants were less likely to receive medical treatment following a crash in the postlaw period. The reduction in the number of injuries was greater for passengers in the right front seat than for drivers and for frontal crashes than for other types of crashes. The injury reduction effects occurred primarily through reductions in the number of head and face injuries, particularly those that occur from contact with windshields and instrument panels.

Accidents, Traffic↗

Motorcycle licensure, ownership, and injury crash involvement.

The interrelationships among motorcycle licensure, ownership, and injury crash involvement were investigated in a sample of 2,723 motorcycle drivers severely or fatally injured in California in 1985-86. Owners of motorcycles in such crashes ("driver-owners") were less likely to have valid licenses than a random sample of motorcycle owners who had not been in crashes (42 vs. 57 percent). Thirty-three percent of the crash-involved drivers had valid motorcycle driver's licenses; 39 percent were operating motorcycles they did not own ("driver-nonowners"). Driver-nonowners were less likely to be validly licensed than driver-owners (20 percent vs. 44 percent). The licensing rate of crash-involved driver-nonowners was 15 percent if the owner was also unlicensed. Rates of valid licensure were lowest among the youngest drivers. Virtually no crash-involved driver-nonowners under age 21 were licensed in cases in which the owner was also young and unlicensed.

Accidents, Traffic↗

High school driver education: further evaluation of the DeKalb County study.

The DeKalb County, Georgia, study is the largest experimental evaluation of high school driver education to date. Detailed reanalyses of data from that study reveal that students assigned to an enhanced driver education program (Safe Performance Curriculum) were more likely to obtain drivers licenses, to be in car crashes and to have traffic violations than control students not assigned to driver education. Students assigned to a minimal program of high school driver education (Pre-Driver Licensing Curriculum) were also more likely than control students to obtain licenses, but the difference was smaller than for the enhanced program and they were not significantly more likely to be in crashes or to have violations. Students in the more limited course were less likely than those in the enhanced course to complete the course in a timely manner, which suggests that exposure differences may explain differences between the two groups. The results confirm that greater availability of driver education causes students to become licensed sooner, although the DeKalb study probably underestimates the effect. Because of this greater exposure, crashes and violations are incurred at an earlier age.

Accidents, Traffic↗

Projected mortality from injuries.

Illustrative projections of mortality from injuries, all accidents and motor vehicle crashes were developed based on current mortality rates. If exposure to existing injury sources is unchanged and unless more effective injury prevention countermeasures are employed, 8 million injury deaths may be expected to occur among the resident population of the United States alive in 1980. These deaths include nearly 2 million motor vehicle fatalities and more than 5.6 million deaths from all accidents.

Accidents↗

Indexes of severity: underlying concepts--a reply.

A recent paper on the concepts underlying six indexes of severity that have been proposed for health services research claimed to identify deficiencies in each. A close examination reveals that the criticisms are generally without substance, and that the claim that the indexes "violate some of the principles implied by their formulation" is in error. Most of the objections apparently stem from fundamental confusion concerning the use of such indexes. Two of the indexes in question, the Abbreviated Injury Scale AIS) and the Injury Severity Score (ISS), have been validated and are being used widely both in the United States and elsewhere as the principal descriptors of trauma in motor vehicle crashes. The use of these indexes has contributed significantly to motor vehicle crash research and to the improvements in vehicles and highways that are reducing the trauma resulting from such crashes.

Abstracting and Indexing↗