This paper discusses the characteristics and injury patterns of serious road injuries (MAIS2+ inpatients) in the Netherlands. Methods: In the Netherlands, the actual number of serious injuries is estimated by linking police data to hospital data. The distribution of serious road injuries over 1) travel mode and gender and 2) crash type and age are compared for the years 2000 and 2011. Moreover, the distribution of the injuries over the body regions is illustrated using coloured injury body profiles. The number of serious injuries is higher for men than for women and increased from 16500 in 2000 to 19700 in 2011. In 2011, about half (51%) of the serious road injuries were injured in a bicycle crash not involving a motor vehicle. The share of casualties aged 60 years and older is relatively high (43% in 2011) in these crashes. The injury body profiles show that head injuries (31%) and injuries to the lower extremities (37%) are most prevalent. Compared to other travel modes, pedestrians and riders of powered two wheelers relatively often sustain lower-leg injuries compared to other travel modes. Head injuries are most prevalent in cyclists that are injured in a crash with a motorized vehicle. Cyclists that are injured in a crash not involving a motor vehicle and casualties of 60 years and older relatively often sustain hip or upper-leg injuries. The characteristics of serious road injuries differ from those of fatalities and the distribution of injuries over the body differs by travel mode, gender and age. (Author/publisher)
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