Factors related to motorcycle accidents with victims: an epidemiological survey

• Autor(a) principal: Greve,Júlia Maria D’Andréa
• Data de Publicação: 2018
• Outros Autores: Resende,Marcelo Rosa, Carvalho,Heráclito Barbosa de, Andreuccetti,Gabriel, Bernini,Celso O., Leyton,Vilma
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: MedicalExpress (São Paulo. Online)
• Texto Completo: http://old.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2358-04292018000100306
• topic: Motorcycle; Accidents; Epidemiology; Trauma

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the factors associated with traffic motorcycles accidents. METHODS: The sample consisted of 285 motorcycle accident victims in São Paulo. Data were collected from 24-hour emergency service shifts regarding: conditions of the victims, security equipment, road and vehicle conditions. RESULTS: Victims were mostly young men (92%); 23% used the motorcycle for work (average: 8 hours per day); 45% had owned a motorcycle for less than two years; 77% were licensed motorcycle drivers; 33% had less than four years of qualification; 31% had attended a course of defensive driving. Severe lesions were identified in 67% of the unlicensed drivers. Polytrauma occurred in 9% head trauma in 5% of the entire population. Lower limb fractures occurred more frequently than upper limb (17% vs. 12%). Most wore helmets (90%) but only 18% wore helmet, boots and jacket. Positive readings for alcohol (7%) and drugs (14%) occurred in 21% of victims. Most accidents occurred as a consequence of imprudence (88%), during the day (67%), in dry weather conditions (94%). A side impact was registered in 48% of cases; 80% of motorcycles had an engine capacity up to 250 cc. In 51% of the accidents the person responsible for the accident was the driver of the other vehicle in the accident. CONCLUSION: Most accidents involve motorcyclists who are young male adults, use the motorcycle as a means of transport and do not consider safety, defensive driving and the use of alcohol and drugs as important factors.