For political and logistical reasons the epidemiology of road traffic injuries is inadequate in describing the dimensions of this man-made disease.Police information forms the basis of raw input but many issues of interest to researchers are missing. A hierarchy of studies has evolved yet there are no accepted parameters for describing and quantifying disabilities arising from traffic injuries. The injury outcome from a traffic crash is the result of combinations of many factors, intrinsic and extrinsic to the casualty, temporary or permanent in nature. Pre-crash factors, crash factors and post-crash factors highlight the relevance of population variations and the need for sound epidemiological data to support the research. Examples of research in the field of experimental biomechanics are described and the need to recognise population variations in design and regulations is illustrated, including the need to focus on the demographical changes occurring worldwide. Areas for further knowledge include population differences and associated effects such as age; crashworthiness design across the range of crash types; trans-national co-operation in data collection and use; long-term consequences; demographical information including safety needs; and development of a scaling device for police and first responders that is compatible with in-depth and hospital-based studies.
Samenvatting