The effectiveness of crash helmet wearing for riders of heavy motorcycles is not a matter of serious discussion in the public. Wearing rates of up to 95% are usual. On the other hand, crash helmets are not very commonly seen with mopedists and the wearing of a helmet for a non-racing bicyclist seems to be out of discussion for most people. However, data on head injuries within the latter two categories strongly suggest the usage of suitable head gear. After a literature review on head injuries with light two-wheelers and helmets the results of three different in-depth studies with a total number of 940 cases (243 bicycle and 697 moped) are discussed.
Abstract