|
 Riders with helmets were also less likely to die from their
injuries, and less likely to break facial bones, than those not
wearing a helmet, researchers report in American Journal of Surgery.
“It’s similar to wearing a seat belt, said Dr. Jerri Rose, a
pediatric emergency physician at University Hospitals’ Rainbow
Babies and Children's Hospital in Cleveland, Ohio, who was not
involved in the study. “Wearing one doesn’t ensure that you’re not
going to get in a car accident, but it lowers the risk of injury and
of dying in a car accident.”
Millions of Americans ride bicycles, but less than half wear bicycle
helmets, according to the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention.
In the U.S., there were 900 deaths and an estimated 494,000
emergency room visits due to bicycle-related injuries in 2013, the
study authors write.
Using the American College of Surgeons' National Trauma Data Bank,
the researchers analyzed records of 6,267 people treated in 2012 for
bleeding inside the skull after a bicycle accident.
One quarter of patients had been wearing a bicycle helmet at the
time of their accident. Just over half of the patients had severe
traumatic brain injuries and 3 percent died.
Researchers found that people wearing helmets had 52 percent lower
risk of severe TBI, compared to unhelmeted riders, and a 44 percent
lower risk of death.
Riders with helmets also had 31 percent lower odds of facial
fractures. The upper part of the face, particularly around the eyes,
was most protected. Helmets offered less protection against
fractures to the lower part of the face, such as the nose and jaw.
Moreover, people who wore helmets reduced their likelihood of having
brain surgery, further confirming a certain level of protection with
helmet use, the study team writes.
[to top of second column] |
“Using helmets has always been controversial,” said study coauthor
Dr. Asad Azim, a research fellow in the department of Surgery at the
University of Arizona in Tucson. “Critics argue that due to its
incomplete design bicycle helmets are of no use and do not protect
riders when it comes to severe injuries.”
But “the results of the study say different,” he told Reuters Health
by email.
Helmeted riders were more likely to be white, female and insured
compared to non-helmeted riders. Riders aged 10 to 20 were among the
least likely to wear a helmet, while those aged 60 to 70 were most
likely to wear one.
“About 75 percent of people in this study weren’t wearing helmets so
we have a long way to go in terms of making sure that people wear
helmets when cycling,” Rose said.
“Especially teens,” she added, “they perceive it as not cool.”
The key is to start them early, Rose said. “Starting early is really
important. As soon as they start riding their bikes, they should be
taught to wear a helmet. It has to become a routine.”
[© 2016 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2016 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
