A literature review of published studies (16) on alcohol and traffic injuries in developing countries was undertaken to examine evidence of the prevalence of alcohol. The studies employed different measurement methods and cut-off levels of blood alcohol concentrations (BACs). 8 fatality studies reported varied BACs in drivers ranging from 33.3 to 63.2 percent. In four studies, alcohol prevalence, tested in less than 50 percent of the study population, varied from 17.3 to 46 percent. No clear selection criteria were stated, and the representativeness of those tested could not be ascertained. In 8 non-fatality studies, the proportion of intoxicated subjects were considerably lower and varied widely, varied widely, from 7.7 to 28.4 percent. Alcohol prevalence was consistently higher amongst drivers than in other road users, and over 95 percent of intoxicated drivers were male of alcohol positive subjects were aged between 20 and 30 years. From this review, evidence of the influence of alcohol in traffic injuries in developing countries is limited. Due to variable measurements and threshold BAC levels applied, direct comparison of results is inappropriate. There is need for a standardized methodology, reliable BAC measuring devices and a uniform cut-off level. (A)
Abstract