Benham EC, Ross SW, Mavilia M, Fischer PE, Christmas AB, Sing RF. Am. J. Surg. 2016; 214(2): 211-216.
Affiliation
Division of Acute Care Surgery, Department of Surgery, Carolinas Medical Center, Charlotte, NC, USA. Electronic address: Ronald.Sing@CarolinasHealthCare.org.
BACKGROUND: Patient demographics, behavior, and injury patterns were assessed to inform preventative efforts for reduced incidence of all-terrain vehicle (ATV) trauma.
METHODS: ATV-related injuries treated at a Level I trauma center from 2008 to 2012 were retrospectively reviewed. Patient outcomes and incidence of traumatic brain injury (TBI) were compared by helmet use and alcohol intoxication.
RESULTS: Helmet data were available for 304 patients of 404 patients included; of these, 75 (24.7%) wore a helmet. Incidence of TBI was lower in the helmeted (8.0%) versus the unhelmeted subgroup (26.6%) (P < 0.001). Helmeted patients had lower injury severity scores, lower intensive-care unit (ICU) admission rates, and shorter ICU and hospital length of stay (LOS) (P < 0.05). Intoxicated patients had higher rates of TBI and ICU admission as well as prolonged ICU LOS (P < 0.05).
CONCLUSIONS: These data support the requirement for a greater emphasis on injury prevention among ATV users.