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NEWS
Study: universal motorcycle helmet laws more effective
An American study wanted to know if universal laws were more or less effective in protecting young people than laws requiring helmets only for certain age groupsRates of traumatic brain injury in young motorcycle riders are lower in states with legislation requiring all riders to wear a helmet than in those where only younger riders must wear one, a new study shows.
A team from the University of Arizona wanted to know if universal laws were more or less effective in protecting young people than laws requiring helmets only for certain age groups.
They identified 587 motorcycle riders — passengers or drivers — who were younger than 21 years and had been hospitalised in 2011 with a traumatic brain injury resulting from a motorcycle acciadent.
They analysed this group according to state law — whether a helmet was required for all riders, for riders younger than 21 years, or for riders younger than 18 years.
The incidence of traumatic brain injury was significantly lower in states requiring a helmet for all riders than in those requiring a helmet for only younger riders.
Overall, young riders were 2.5 times less likely to sustain a traumatic head injury in a motorcycle accident in states requiring helmets for all riders, the report said.
"Universal helmet laws reduce traumatic brain injury among children and adolescents," said Dr Kathryn Anderson, who was part of the project. "And, unfortunately, there is a trend toward repealing these laws."
Currently, 19 states have universal laws, 28 states have laws only for younger riders, and three states have no motorcycle helmet laws.
The report was presented at a clinical conference in America. After the presentation, an audience member said that if broader laws resulted in fewer traumatic brain injuries, then states requiring helmets for riders younger than 21 should have fewer such injuries than states requiring them for riders younger than 18 — the opposite of what Dr Anderson reported.
"I agree," said Dr Anderson. "I'm a little unsure why states with broader coverage — that is, up to 21 — had a higher rate of traumatic brain injury, except to say that I don't think there's a huge difference between the states that require up to 18 and those that require up to 21."
Enforcement could be an issue, she said.
"It's easier to enforce if you have a universal law," Dr Newton pointed out. "It's pretty hard for law enforcement to see the difference between a 16-year-old and a 19-year-old. That's a primary issue."
Dr Anderson explained that the effectiveness of enforcement among states is difficult to track, because laws are written differently in different states.
For example, some states require insurance for medical liability. "I highly doubt that a police officer is going to pull you over and say, 'Can I see your insurance coverage'," she said. "It's hard to tease that out, and we weren't able to look at that specifically."
Source: www.medscape.com
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Written byBikesales Staff
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