Bike Collision Stats (2002)

[Leo C. Driscoll]

http://www.bhsi.org/stats.htm

Some surprises in these stats compiled by the Bike Helmet Safety Institute. "Four states (California, Florida, New York, and Texas) accounted for 47 percent of bicycle deaths in 2002."
Some enigmas- high correlation between death and injury and not wearing a helmet. Yet few states require helmets. Maybe local ordinances are the way to go. What's your take on these stats?

:roflmao: :roflmao:

[skydive69]

http://www.bhsi.org/stats.htm

Some surprises in these stats compiled by the Bike Helmet Safety Institute. CA most dangerous for bikers! Some enigmas- high correlation between death and injury and not wearing a helmet. Yet few states require helmets. Maybe local ordinances are the way to go. What's your take on these stats?

:roflmao: :roflmao:

Regarding helmet laws - we have already been through that hassle with motorcycle helmets, and we were able to get the law rescinded here in Florida. Having said that, I choose to wear a helmet, but I believe in free choice. Your idea about local ordinances would be the most confusing legislation imaginable. I can envision entering a county, and strapping your helmet on, and removing it when you leave.

If anyone wants to fight for legitimate legislation, how about the requirement to wear a seat belt in a public conveyance such as a school bus?

In conclusion, I promised myself to stay out of the political BS and stick to cycling so nevermind! :D

[closetbiker]

OK, stir it up!

Here,

http://www.magma.ca/~ocbc/hfaq.html

your answer is question #1

[Leo C. Driscoll]

OK, closetbiker. Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn, and caldron bubble ;-)

To the authors of this highly biased "FAQ" ( http://www.magma.ca/~ocbc/hfaq.html) I would repeat Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan's axiom, "Everyone is entitled to his [her] own opnion, but not to his [her] own facts."

The following facts are based on analysis of data from the U.S. Department of Transportation's Fatality Analysis Reporting System:

660 bicyclists were killed in crashes with motor vehicles in 2002. This is 9 percent fewer than in 2001 and down 34 percent since 1975.
Bicycle deaths are most likely to occur in summer and fall. Deaths are most likely to occur on Fridays. The peak time is 6-9 pm.
Eighty-five percent of bicyclists killed in 2002 reportedly weren't wearing helmets.
Twenty-three percent of bicyclists killed in 2002 had a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08 or greater

:roflmao: :roflmao:

[skydive69]

OK, closetbiker. Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn, and caldron bubble ;-)

To the authors of this highly biased "FAQ" ( http://www.magma.ca/~ocbc/hfaq.html) I would repeat Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan's axiom, "Everyone is entitled to his [her] own opnion, but not to his [her] own facts."

The following facts are based on analysis of data from the U.S. Department of Transportation's Fatality Analysis Reporting System:

660 bicyclists were killed in crashes with motor vehicles in 2002. This is 9 percent fewer than in 2001 and down 34 percent since 1975.
Bicycle deaths are most likely to occur in summer and fall. Deaths are most likely to occur on Fridays. The peak time is 6-9 pm.
Eighty-five percent of bicyclists killed in 2002 reportedly weren't wearing helmets.
Twenty-three percent of bicyclists killed in 2002 had a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08 or greater

:roflmao: :roflmao:

I guess the only stat that really surprises me is the extent of alcohol involvement - on the part of the bicyclists.

[John E]

Regarding 47% of bicyclist deaths in California, Florida, New York, and Texas:
1) I would like to see the breakdown by state and number of bicyclists, because I am guessing that Florida will have a significantly higher death RATE per million cyclists or per million miles cycled than the other three states;
2) I would like to see these percentages compared directly against the comparable stats on motorist and pedestrian deaths, to put things into a more useful perspective.

[closetbiker]

OK, closetbiker. Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn, and caldron bubble ;-)
:roflmao: :roflmao:

Oh, come on now. As if the BHSI isn't highly biased.

Question #1 answers your repeated question. Question #2, under the Canadian fatality trends link, addresses the drop in deaths from 1975 to 2002

For more info, try http://www.pcug.org.au/~psvansch/crag/h-i-mech.htm for what a cycle helmet can't do and what about, the graphic on the first page here: http://www.cyclehelmets.org/

Is it coincidence that the countries with more and safer cycling are where fewest cyclists wear helmets?

and doesn't that first BHSI page quote FARS as showing cycling has half the fatality rate per hour travelled as cars?

[Dchiefransom]

Gee, do you think that the high number of immigrants that don't speak English, don't wear helmets, and break almost every common snese safety rule of cycling have anything to do with the numbers being so high in those four states?

[closetbiker]

Gee, do you think that the high number of immigrants that don't speak English, don't wear helmets, and break almost every common snese safety rule of cycling have anything to do with the numbers being so high in those four states?

YIKES!!! What kind of predudicial comment is that????

Lets keep comment onto the substance of the topic.

Maybe you could say collisions happen when road users (motorists and cyclists alike) take unnessesary risks?

[Mars]

*Eighty-five percent of bicyclists killed in 2002 reportedly weren't wearing helmets*

That seems like an impressive statistic until you dig a little deeper. First, we don't know how many of those cyclist deaths were the result of a brain injury. Second, we don't know how many of those deaths, if there was a brain injury, could have been prevented by a helmet (getting hit by a speeding car, for example). Further, we don't know what proportion of the group that were killed (age, demographics) normally wear helmets. For instance, if 99% of a certain group never wears a helmet and 85% that were killed were not wearing a helmet, then wearing a helmet is a liability...

By their own estimates, 75% of cyclists don't wear helmets. Assuming that 10% of the reported deaths were not head injuries ro preventible by a helmet (which seems pretty resonable to me) then this organizations own stats do not support helmet use.

[Martyr]

YIKES!!! What kind of predudicial comment is that????



sounded prejudicial to me


Maybe you could say collisions happen when road users (motorists and cyclists alike) take unnessesary risks?

surely this is a troll no? not all accidents are the result of risks taken by the sufferer, unless you say that riding is inherently risky and therefore the only way to mitigate risk is by not riding at all.

Beside any risk a rider may or may not take, there are many things beyond their control beside major traumo induced by a motor vehicle. There is mechanical failure, poor pavement maintenance, poor pavement design, uncontrolled animals, uncontrolled pedestrians, sudden environmental changes (say oil being brought up after first rain in dry spell - you guys get ice on the pavement dont you?).

the point of wearing a helmet is to mitigate a head injury. has anyone claimed that a helmet can save a brain when its head bounces off a windscreen at 60km/hr?

i dont know if you are saying it, but the document you reference infers that helmets dont save lives. i doubt anyone was killed by wearing a helmet though, and so it would seem pretty good sense to make the small investment and just wear one. But you have freedom of choice; you can do what you like. Here in Melbourne, you'll probably have to pay a fine though.


cheers


Marty

[Mars]

By the way, Closetbiker, you rock.

[Martyr]

*Eighty-five percent of bicyclists killed in 2002 reportedly weren't wearing helmets*

That seems like an impressive statistic until you dig a little deeper. First, we don't know how many of those cyclist deaths were the result of a brain injury. Second, we don't know how many of those deaths, if there was a brain injury, could have been prevented by a helmet (getting hit by a speeding car, for example). Further, we don't know what proportion of the group that were killed (age, demographics) normally wear helmets. For instance, if 99% of a certain group never wears a helmet and 85% that were killed were not wearing a helmet, then wearing a helmet is a liability...


You are correct to question the stats.
They say there are lies, damn lies and statistics.


By their own estimates, 75% of cyclists don't wear helmets. Assuming that 10% of the reported deaths were not head injuries ro preventible by a helmet (which seems pretty resonable to me) then this organizations own stats do not support helmet use.

I am a cyclist and I dont wear a helmet when i have a shower - and i estimate that i dont do this 100% of the time!

75%: On which planet mars?
By their own estimates: whose estimates? The cyclists? Survey authors?
Where and when was this published? Which organisation? Can you cite the survey please?

I ride every day to and from work - 2 hour round trip. I very rarely see anyone not wearing a helmet. I haven't counted, but believe i might see 3 or 4 people per week not wearing a helmet while they are riding a bike. and i see a lot more than 5 people per week riding.

Tell you what: I am back at work next Tuesday. I will start counting the number of people i see riding and then count how many dont wear a helmet. I might be surprised.

cheers

Marty

[Mars]

Marty,
Read the link in the original post.

FWIW, I see more than 75% of cyclists with helmets as well.

[closetbiker]

By the way, Closetbiker, you rock.

Gee, thanks. I don't know what to say, I'm so used to getting flack, that I don't know how to handle a compliment.

[Martyr]

Marty,
Read the link in the original post.

FWIW, I see more than 75% of cyclists with helmets as well.

oh, that survey:-)

i must be a bit sensitive. hope i wasn't rude as well!

i went down 2 weeks ago early on a very wet morning, and only realised i'd been knocked out after i got to work and started getting flashbacks and suffering the effects of concussion.

i hit the side of my head - at least the side of my helmet is grazed. i expect that i'd have suffered greater injury had i not been wearing a helmet; and no, i am not willing to prove that!

on the other hand, had i not been wearing a helmet then i wouldn't have to shell out for a new one now that this one is busted.

Still, I think i will attempt to count helmets for 1 week, next week. Anyone else up for it?




cheers


marty

[Leo C. Driscoll]

Mars, you're in the correct orbit ;-) The eight-five percent stat and helmet non-usage is just a correlation. It suggests that there is an important connection between bike fatalities and lack of lids.

It does not consider all the variables you mention because it is not a clinical statement.

The following is a clinical report that goes beyond correlation. This is from the Colorado Neurological Institute (CNI). It argues a cause-effect relationship between riding without a helmet and TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury).

http://www.thecni.org/reviews/11-1-p27-levy.htm

Because the CNI report extends to other sports and is long, I'll paste some of the TBI stats.

"Bicycling is an extremely popular recreational activity in Colorado, and the use of bicycles as a mode of transportation is increasing. Each year there are more than 500,000 emergency room visits related to bicycle injuries nationwide; 350,000 of those injured are children.

One-third of all emergency room visits for bicycle related injuries, and two-thirds of all hospital admissions are for head injuries. An estimated 900 people die each year in the US from bicycle accidents; about 200 of those killed are children under 15 years of age. Head injury is the cause of death in 70% to 80% of bicycle related fatalities.

Bicycle helmets have been shown to reduce the risk of head injury by 85%, brain injury by 88%, and severe brain injury by 75%, and were found to be just as effective in preventing injuries involving collisions with motor vehicles as for any other type of accident.

According to a CPSC 1999 bicycle helmet use survey, 50% of riders regularly wear bike helmets; 43% reported wearing a helmet all the time and 7% wear a helmet more than half the time they ride. About 38% of adults reported regular helmet use, and 69% of children wear helmets regularly, according to their parents. This represents a significant increase in helmet use since the CPSC’s last survey in 1991, in which only 18% of riders wore a helmet regularly. Clearly, education and public awareness efforts have paid off with increased helmet use, but there is still significant room for improvement.

From 1990-1999 there were 515 patients admitted to our level I trauma center in Denver with bicycle related injuries (unpublished data). Only 145 (28.2%) were wearing a helmet at the time of the accident. Of those wearing a helmet 62 (42.8%) suffered a TBI, and 3 died, for a mortality rate of 2.1%. Of those not wearing a helmet, 55.3% sustained a TBI and 3.7% died."

I don't like to end this grim communiqué with my signature animation, but anyway....Thanks for joining the
discussion. I 'hope others will also share their views!


:roflmao: :roflmao:

[Mars]

marty and lowenherz:

thanks for your polite responses to an alternative opinion. And marty, glad to hear that you are ok after your fall. Now, to business:

Look at the contradictions in the fugures from Colorado. They claim that 2/3 of hospital admissions from bike accidents are head injuries, but in the Denver figures, they account for 266 out of 515, or 51%. Then, they claim that helmets reduce injury by 85%, 88%, and 75% (how did they get those figures, anyway?) but the denver figures look like this: TBI helmeted 42.8%; non-helmeted 55.3 - for a difference of 12.5%. For death from TBI, helmeted 2.1%; non-helmeted 3.7% - for a difference of 1.6%.

Now, one could argue that a difference of 12.5% for an injury or 1.6% for a death is nothing to dismiss, but, again, we don't know the additional evidence. Were there other differences between the accident victims that might account for these figures? For example, let's assume (for the purposes of making a point) that the helmeted folks were mostly middle class adults commuting to work, while the non-helmeted folks were poor kids who couldn't affrod helmets and lived in a poorer part of town. Factors such as the average speed of impact might change from neighbourhood to neighbourhood, the quickness of abulance response, distance to the hospital, overall health of the victim, and so forth. My point is that there are many variables that may play a role here and a pretty small difference (12.5% and 1.6% to be exact) between the TBI/mortality rate of these two groups.

Now, consider the risk of head injuries in an automobile accident. Or falling on the front step. shouldn't people wear helmets while driving or walking?

[Mars]

Marty: i will count the people with/without helmets for a week and post the results on this forum.

[closetbiker]

The following is a clinical report that goes beyond correlation. This is from the Colorado Neurological Institute (CNI). It argues a cause-effect relationship between riding without a helmet and TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury).

Read #5

[closetbiker]

Now, consider the risk of head injuries in an automobile accident. Or falling on the front step. shouldn't people wear helmets while driving or walking?

Read #8

[Six-Shooter]

Yet few states require helmets. Maybe local ordinances are the way to go.

Why would anyone want even more government intrusion in our lives? You can't dictate prudent or mature behavior from above anyway, barring a shift to a totalitarian police state ready and eager to intrude into and enforce every detail of our lives. I'll pass on that, thanks.

[ksb]

Mars, your math is off; you need to divide the statistics, not subtract them. That is, if you have a 3.7% chance of a death by a traumatic brain injury without wearing a helmet and a 2.1% chance while wearing one, you have reduced your risk of TBI death by 43% (1-2.1/3.7) not 1.6% (3.7-2.1). Yes, the risk was already low, but the helmet made it substantially lower. Considering that the thing being lowered is death, this is good.

Regarding the "inconsistencies," much of that is addressed in the article right after the part that Leo quoted. Here is the full paragraph with the previously-excluded text in blue.

From 1990-1999 there were 515 patients admitted to our level I trauma center in Denver with bicycle related injuries (unpublished data). Only 145 (28.2%) were wearing a helmet at the time of the accident. Of those wearing a helmet 62 (42.8%) suffered a TBI, and 3 died, for a mortality rate of 2.1%. Of those not wearing a helmet, 55.3% sustained a TBI and 3.7% died. Unfortunately, helmet use was lower among our population than noted in the CPSC survey, and helmets reduced the risk of TBI by only 23%. The severity of brain injury was reduced more dramatically by helmets, with a 62% reduction in craniotomies and a 43% [see, I told you, 43% ;) ] reduction in mortality among those wearing helmets. The apparently low reduction in risk of TBI in this group is likely a result of selection bias in which only patients with a significant injury are referred and admitted to our level I trauma center. The low helmet use rate likely results from a combination of the same admission bias and an overall low helmet use rate in the community surrounding our facility. An informal head count revealed that helmet use in the neighborhood around our hospital is about 25%. This compares with helmet use rates as high as 75% to 90% in other regions of the metro area and in mountain communities. Hopefully with continued widespread public awareness and education efforts, and focused efforts toward communities where helmet use is lowest, we can further increase bicycle helmet use and decrease the incidence and severity of brain injuries.


I was in an accident in October. I was traveling about 25 MPH on a long slight hill. A car made a left across my lane and I went over the hood. My bike was totalled. My right wrist was broken. I had scrapes on my left knee, left shoulder and the left side of my chin. A had a bump on left side of my forehead where my head struck the helmet after the helmet struck the ground. The helmet is dead; I am not. This is good. (My next, and I hope final, appointment with the orthopaedist is Monday.)

I know that "anecdote" is not the singular of "data," even when it's my anecdote. However, there are lots of data that show that wearing helmets reduces injuries and death and little or none that show that it increases them.

[bac]

I know that "anecdote" is not the singular of "data," even when it's my anecdote. However, there are lots of data that show that wearing helmets reduces injuries and death and little or none that show that it increases them.

The only people arguing that going helmetless is safer are the people who don't want to wear helmets for personal reasons. Of course, if you wear a helmet, you are safer, but that doesn't necessarily create the need for a law. Certainly riding a motorcycle puts one @ more risk for injury than driving a car, but motorcycles shouldn't be outlowed for that reason. SUVs flip more easily, but it seems that every other car on the road is an SUV today.

The bottom line is that I could care less if anyone wears a helmet, as it’s not my head; and therfore, it's not my business! I will, however, continue to wear mine. :)

[closetbiker]

... if you have a 3.7% chance of a death by a traumatic brain injury without wearing a helmet and a 2.1% chance while wearing one, you have reduced your risk of TBI death by 43% (1-2.1/3.7) not 1.6% (3.7-2.1).

Read #1 (including the first link provided on post #7)


I was in an accident in October. The helmet is dead; I am not. This is good.

Read #3


there are lots of data that show that wearing helmets reduces injuries

Read #4, 5, 6 & 7

[qmsdc15]

I think the bike helmets are designed to minimze injury when you fall on your head. That's why I use one when riding.

[Six-Shooter]

I wear a helmet not because of laws or statistics but what I take to be common sense based on personal experience: I had to get stitches in my head when I had a childhood bike accident. Back then no one seemed to wear helmets, and I didn't either. It was messy and painful, believe me. Hard to ride with blood running down into your eyes :)

Of course, if you wear a helmet, you are safer, but that doesn't necessarily create the need for a law.

I don't think anyone would enjoy living in a completely safe world--we'd die of boredom--nor would anyone really want the government to legislate everything potentially dangerous out of existence.

[Leo C. Driscoll]

Cool that we have a conversation on this topic- not cool scant curiosity/interest from biodiverse bike forums (even though we all have heads;-) To help keep the conversation going, here are search results from Copernic (meta SE from Montreal).

COPERNIC AGENT SEARCH RESULTS Search: bike injury death stats adult
riders (All the words) Found: 31 result(s) on The Web Date: 12/31/2004
1:07:46 PM 1. Bicycle Helmet Statistics Bicycle helmet and head injury
statistics ... 38 percent of adult bike riders regularly wear their
helmets ... reducing bicycle-related death and injury among children
covered ... They include stats on car/bike vs. bike-only crashes ...
http://www.bhsi.org/stats.htm 85% 2. Bike Helmet Safety ... 38 percent
of adult bike riders regularly wear their helmets ... external causes of
death from injury, by race, sex, and ... They include stats on car/bike
vs. bike-only crashes ...
http://henry.mpls.k12.mn.us/printview/Bike_Helmet_Safety.html 79% 3.
Bicycle Helmet Statistics Bicycle helmet and head injury statistics ...
38 percent of adult bike riders regularly wear their helmets ...
reducing bicycle-related death and injury among children covered ...
They include stats on car/bike vs. bike-only crashes ...
http://www.helmets.org/stats.htm 76% 4. bicycle helmets: bike helmets,
cycle helmets, helmet faq, vehicular BACK ADULT HELMET LAW ... says new
stats suggest that cyclist head injury ... in the cycling press of the
tragic death of ... REPEAL OF MOTOR BIKE... http://www.magma.ca/~ocbc/
72% 5. Bicycle Helmet Statistics 38 percent of adult bike riders
regularly wear their helmets. ... Stats from the Journal of Injury
Prevention...
http://web.ask.com/searchcp?q=bike+injury+death+stats+adult+riders&t=bike+injury+death+stats+adult+riders&cache=00*1t743jixrol5&url=http://www.bhsi.org/stats.htm&page=&ws=1
71% 6. Bike Helmet Safety ... 38 percent of adult bike riders regularly
wear their helmets ... external causes of death from injury, by race,
sex, and ... They include stats on car/bike vs. bike-only crashes ...
http://henry.mpsedu.org/Bike_Helmet_Safety.html 69% 7. Stats Cycling
Forums is a cycling related chat forum. To visit cycling forums, go to
http://www.cyclingforums.com/ . ... Stats. The British Medical
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http://www.cyclingforums.com/t23631.html 69% 8. Teaching Online: ATV
Safety ... guard during rugby or netball - having sufficient skills to
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61% 10. Headed for Injury ... INTRODUCTION Bikes are a classic symbol of
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helmets: bike helmets, cycle helmets, helmet faq, vehicular BACK ADULT
HELMET LAW ... says new stats suggest that cyclist head injury ... in
the cycling press of the tragic death of ... REPEAL OF MOTOR BIKE...
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59% 12. www.siu.edu/~ritzel/courses/313s/psbb/BHSIstats.htm Bicycle
Helmet Safety Institute. A Compendium of Statistics. from Various
Sources. as of October 2000. Only 2 percent of motor vehicle-related
deaths are bicyclists. ... and presented comparative fatality stats for
the three countries ... 38 percent of adu
http://www.siu.edu/~ritzel/courses/313s/psbb/BHSIstats.htm 58% 13.
Helmets and Head Injuries: Crash Stories ... course many unhelmeted
riders crash without brain injury. But we invite ... traffic lanes
toward the bike lane directly in front of ... As an adult cyclist, I've
always worn a helmet ... http://www.bhsi.org/crashes.htm 56% 14. The Bad
Weather Bikers' BBS: Archive through February 09, 2002 Bad Weather
Bikers, A Buell Enthusiasts' Discussion Board and Technical Forum ...
some bike rags). I accept that riding with a helmet reduces my risk of
head injury ... stats to actually tell us what the death rate would be.
Since most riders ...
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National SAFE KIDS Campaign: Promoting child safety to prevent ... ...
too often results when kids on bikes don't ... for up to 80 percent of
bike-related fatalities ... The methodology used in “Headed for Injury:
An Observational Survey ..
http://www.safekids.org/tier3_cd.cfm?content_item_id=14410&folder_id=300
52% 17. De Clarke's Personal Opinion (isn't bisque beautiful?) ...choice
for some riders (especially the ... (1) Is bike head injury fatality a
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Addressing the Leading Cause of Death for ... ... 3. Colorado Death
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... On either day, riders can also opt to ... to serious injury or
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30% 26. Is Cycling Dangerous? -- The Risk of Bicycle Use -- Accidents
... ... notions and to recognize that collisions between bikes and motor
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http://www.kenkifer.com/bikepages/health/risks.htm 28% 27. Massachusetts
Bicycle Advisory Board Report - Introduction ... steadily, but the
all-terrain or mountain bike has opened up ... there were twenty-seven
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injury. .. http://www.massbike.org/bikelaw/advb1989/intro.htm 21% 28.
untitled ... children younger than 13 years and 26% of adult bicycle ...
device available to reduce head injury and death from bicycle ... bike
crashes. Improper bicycle sizing can increase the risk of ......
http://www.ena.org/encare/fact/BikeSafety.pdf 18% 29. Death in Vegas
Your Baby) and Adult.'s ... Las Vegas Serious Injury Lawyer: Wrongful
Death ... Mountain Bike Tours - Bike ... Page - Current project of the
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from ParanoidSisters.com - authors of the ... ... don't have to be
vigilantes on their bikes and scooters ... reach the ground while
sitting on the bike seat ... Nearly 85 percent of these injuries are to
children ages ..
http://www.paranoidsisters.com/info/Bike%20&%20Scooter%20Safety.htm 14%
Report generated by Copernic Agent - See downloadable products at
http://www.copernic.com/


COPERNIC AGENT SEARCH RESULTS Search: bike bicycle helmets injury death
prevention (All the words) Found: 23 result(s) on The Web Date:
12/31/2004 11:59:09 AM 1. Children's Hospital For Parents: Bicycle
Safety Bicycle Safety -- Helmets Make the Grade. Bicycles are associated
with more childhood injuries than any other consumer product except the
automobile. ... Head injury is the leading cause of death from bicycle
crashes. Bike helmets are ... injuries and deat
http://www.akronchildrens.org/injuryprevention/bicycle.html 86% 2.
Targeting Injury Prevention Effectively: Bicycle Helmets ... risk of
death from brain injury among bicyclists ... of increased bike helmet
use on ... Prevention Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report,
Injury-Control Recommendations: Bicycle Helmets ...
http://members.aol.com/targetinginjury/tipebc.htm 83% 3. bicycle
helmets: bike helmets, cycle helmets, helmet faq, vehicular Sheikh and
Adrian Cook published in the journal Injury Prevention claiming a ...
keywords: bicycle helmets, bike helmet, faq, bike, cyclist, safety...
http://www.magma.ca/~ocbc/ 82% 4. The Arc's Q&A on Bicycle Helmets ...
Don't let children ride their bikes unless they ... New Jersey had a 65
percent drop in bike injuries. ... Bicycle helmets for kids: The best
protection against head .. http://www.thearc.org/faqs/bicycle.html 75%
5. Bicycle helmet usage in King County ... Violence and Injury
Prevention Unit " Bicycle helmets ... escaped serious injury or death by
wearing your bicycle helmet when ... 15, 2004. Bike helmets are "Ticket
to Safety ... http://www.metrokc.gov/health/injury/helmets.htm 74% 6.
bicycle helmets: bike helmets, cycle helmets, helmet faq, vehicular
Sheikh and Adrian Cook published in the journal Injury Prevention
claiming a ... keywords: bicycle helmets, bike helmet, faq, bike,
cyclist, safety...
http://web.ask.com/searchcp?q=bike+bicycle+helmets+injury+death+prevention&t=bike+bicycle+helmets+injury+death+prevention&cache=00*pw060ule5l2d&url=http://www.magma.ca/~ocbc/&page=&ws=1
74% 7. EPIC - Bicycle Head Injury Prevention Program Contains useful
facts and resources regarding bicycle safety and helmet use. ... to
reduce injury, death and disability by increasing the use of bicycle
helmets ... Brain Injury Prevention, Helmet Use and Bicycle Safety.
Learn how to combine your bike safe http://www.dhs.ca.gov/epic/bike 69%
8. National SAFE KIDS Campaign: Promoting child safety to prevent ...
... treated in hospital emergency rooms for bicycle-related injuries ...
s so important to teach your kids bike safety as ... A single rule –
wear a helmet – can reduce ..
http://www.safekids.org/tier2_rl.cfm?folder_id=169 68% 9. National SAFE
KIDS Campaign: Promoting child safety to prevent ... ... rooms for
injuries related to biking than any ... essential to the effectiveness
of bike helmets at reducing ... bicycle helmet use and reducing
bicycle-related death ..
http://www.safekids.org/tier3_cd.cfm?content_item_id=1010&folder_id=540
67% 10. Risk compensation theory should be subject to systematic reviews
of ...to determine whether bicycle helmets reduce head, brain, and
facial injury ... of risk compensation to bike helmets. ... to bicycle
injury... http://ip.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/8/2/e1 61% 11.
Brain Injury and Bicycle Helmets Injury-Control Recommendations: Bicycle
Helmets. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ... Death rates from
bicycle-related head injury were...
http://www.neuroskills.com/tbi/cdcbikeback.shtml 59% 12. Bicycle Helmet
Statistics ... Bell Sports manufactures more than four million bicycle
helmets per year in the US ... Bike riders were issued tickets in just 2
percent,; Bikes running stop .. http://www.bhsi.org/stats.htm 57% 13.
National SAFE KIDS Campaign: Promoting child safety to prevent
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of children unintentional injury. ... Head injury is the leading cause
of death in bicycle crash
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57% 14. Risk compensation theory should be subject to systematic reviews
of ...to determine whether bicycle helmets reduce head, brain, and
facial injury ... of risk compensation to bike helmets. ... to bicycle
injury... http://ip.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/7/2/89 54% 15.
Injury-Control Recommendations: Bicycle Helmets Death rates from
bicycle-related head ... other bicycles (1,11). BICYCLE HELMETS AND THE
PREVENTION OF HEAD INJURY ... The implementation of...
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/00036941.htm 48% 16. EPIC -
Bicycle Head Injury Prevention Program ... Bicycle Media Outreach Kit -
Word (149k), PDF (109k) - Useful tools to promote love of biking and the
importance of bike safety for lifelong fun and ..
http://www.dhs.ca.gov/epic/bike/default.htm 43% 17. DOH Injury
Prevention Project Increased Use of Bike Helmets by Children from
Low-Income Families ... head injury from bicycle crashes, the ... DOH
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from ... and it greatly increases the risk of death by ...
http://www.doh.wa.gov/../Publicat/EpiTrends/98-99_EpiTrends/0598tren.pdf
30% 18. Bicycle Helmet FAQ ... bicycle use like downhill mountain bike
racing, where ... bareheaded cyclists falling off their bikes without
incurring ... any good reason to wear them on bicycles? ..
http://www.magma.ca/~ocbc/hfaq.html 27% 19. Injury-Control
Recommendations: Bicycle Helmets February 17, 1995 / 44(RR-1);1-18.
Injury-Control Recommendations: Bicycle Helmets. Summary ... population,
and 45% of bike owners ride at least occasionally ... among males. Death
rates from bicycle-related head injury were highest ... BICYCLE HELMETS
AND http://www.cdc.gov/epo/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/00036941.htm 25% 20.
Violence & Injury Prevention Program For every one injury death, there
are 10 ... implement community-based injury prevention programs and
activities. Safety Tips. Bicycle helmets save...
http://www.health.state.ut.us/cfhs/he/vipp/ 25% 21. How to Correctly
Wear a Bicycle Helmet - and Why It is Important ... and sharing the
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safer bikes, educating riders ... dedicated to providing bike-safety
education .. http://www.pamf.org/children/common/safety/helmets.html 20%
22. Bike riding helmets: public obesity health statistics ...explaining
bike helmets and the prevention of head injury, it states: The testing
of bike helmets ... Bicycle helmets cannot protect against...
http://www.cycle-helmets.com/helmet_statistics.html 19% 23. BIANJ |
Prevention | Bicycle Safety ... with injuries related to biking than
with ... s Release National Survey on Bike Helmet Usage: Helmet ...
hwysafety.org/safety_facts/fatality_facts/bikes.htm (January 29 ..
http://www.bianj.org/prevention_bike.html 15% Report generated by
Copernic Agent - See downloadable products at http://www.copernic.com/

:roflmao: :roflmao:

[closetbiker]

Cool that we have a conversation on this topic- not cool scant curiosity/interest from biodiverse bike forums (even though we all have heads;-) To help keep the conversation going, here are search results from Copernic (meta SE from Montreal).

:roflmao: :roflmao:

C,mon that's not much. Anyone can post search results, I've got a thousand. That's nothing new. Maybe theres not much intrest because this subject has been beaten to death with the repetative nature of the arguments, particularily the last 2 months. Post someting new and unique. Make a decent argument. Accept that opinions are not facts. Understand what opinions are and what facts are.

But I know you're just trying to stir things up. You could do a better job than this.

[Mars]

ksb:

you would divide the one value into the other if you were comparing the directly. in my analysis, given a TBI, what difference would wearing a helmet make? The result is not much. Further, since the numbers were so low, the analysis of death is not statistically significant (using a chi square). However, there is a significant difference with TBI injures (p=.01) between helmeted and non-helmeted cyclists. However, as I noted above, there are too many confounds to draw firm conclusions. As you know (or I think you know from your previous comments) correlation does not imply causation.

[ksb]

correlation does not imply causation.

I once heard a great example of this having to do with a pretty tight correlation between the number of miles of railroads and the number of prostitutes in a town. Something to do with the early development of the western states... It's still funny to think about...

[Mars]

closetbiker:
A follow up on my previous comment.
I just wanted to acknowledge your intelligent, civil, and always interesting posts on this forum. You obviously have strong feelings regarding helmet laws, but have always posted data based and coherent comments. Us helmet skeptics are obviously outnumbered on this forum (and in general) and it is nice to have such a capable voice articulating our perspective.

[Mars]

ksb:
haha, that's right. How about this one: the correlation between the number of churches per square mile and the amount of pornography sold per square mile? (It's because they are both densely found in cities).

[randya]

A helmet is personal protective gear, and wearing one should be a matter of personal choice. The decision to wear one should be based on the amount of risk involved in the activity you're engaged in.

If you're in a car that's involved in a collision and your head hits the inside of the window or the steering wheel or the dash, you're likely to have serious head injuries - driving is way riskier than cycling in this regard, mostly because of the higher speeds involved; but, as pointed out previously, motorists aren't required to wear helmets.

The human perception of risk is what we're really talking about here. Almost everyone motors in the US; therefore, people have a pretty nonchalant attitude about driving, and the risks involved are perceived as negligible, even though they are actually quite high. Remember how hard it was to get seatbelts in cars in the first place, and then to get people to use them? And just try to get people to obey the speed limit, which is a safety-based regulation.

Cycling is only perceived as riskier than driving, because is seems dangerous - mostly to people that don't actually participate in cycling.

A helmet should never be considered an acceptable substitute for good cycling skills. If you're wearing a helmet out of fear of traffic, you're probably not enjoying cycling very much; if you're wearing a helmet because the law requires it, it doesn't mean your cycling skills are up to the task.

Neither should requiring cyclists to wear helmets be considered an acceptable substitute for improving motorist behavior towards cyclists on the road. Personally, I think that focusing on education for both motorists and cyclists, aimed at improving traffic safety for all road users, should be a higher priority than mandatory helmet laws for cyclists. Of course, this would take a little more effort on the government's part than simply passing a mandatory helmet law.

I wear my helmet in higher risk situations like commuting in traffic or while ZooBombing. I also add knee and elbow protection for ZooBombing, but I don't for everyday riding. One of my helmets is a hockey helmet with a soft liner, which probably performs better than the rigid foam bicycle helmets. But if I'm just going to the corner store or cruising the neighborhood, I might not wear my helmet at all.

In the EU countries I've visited - France and Spain - there was virtually no helmet use by bicyclists, but there was by motorcyclists, because riding a motorbike is inherently a higher risk activity than bicycling. In most cases, it appeared that motorists were also much more tolerant of cyclists than in the US.

My $0.02

:)

edit: I've got some empirical data to offer: I've been riding my bicycle regularly for something like 43 years now, the first 25 without a helmet. I fell a chipped a tooth when I was first learning to ride - a helmet wouldn't have prevented that from happening. Since then, I've never hit my head, including one dooring incident where I was knocked to the ground.

[closetbiker]

closetbiker:
A follow up on my previous comment... it is nice to have such a capable voice articulating our perspective.

Thanks again for the acknowledgement, it sure is nicer than being called a troll. I just try to add some common sense to areas where I see it's lacking. I'm always open to reasonable arguments on all sides.

[Dchiefransom]

YIKES!!! What kind of predudicial comment is that????

Lets keep comment onto the substance of the topic.

Maybe you could say collisions happen when road users (motorists and cyclists alike) take unnessesary risks?

It was a comment about a possible cause of the statistics being so high in the four states. It's taken from my everyday observations of cyclists I see. I notice that it was immediately discounted, probably because it was politically incorrect(political correctness is McCarthyism inversed), but if accurate, or the results of an "official" study funded by millions of taxpayer dollars, it might reveal where cycling education could be targeted to have the biggest effect. We've discussed wrong way cyclsits, and cyclists(adults) riding on the sidewalk. Guess which groups fit into those categories in my area the most? I'm not afraid to put into words exactly what I observe around me. My intent was not to slander, or be prejudicial to any ethnic or racial groups, but to point out my observations as to what might be a cause. We don't hand people driver's licenses when they enter this country, we make them take a test, AND, we help them out with studying for that test in their own language before they have to take that test. In the meantime, they only need to go down to a dept store and shell out $100 for a bike, then start riding it on the roads and sidewalks. The higher the number of people on our roads and sidewalks that don't know about the rules of the road, or don't care, the higher the potential for accidents.

[John E]

Although we don't have consensus regarding helmets, I think the majority position among U.S.-based bikeforum members is: 1) "I CHOOSE to wear a helmet whenever I ride." 2) "I oppose mandatory helmet laws for adults and similar nanny state intrusions by the government." 3) "Since helmets reduce injury or death rates in only certain types of incidents, we must avoid risk compensation, which is the main cogent argument against helmet usage. A helmet does NOT render me invincible."

[GeezerGeek]

http://www.bhsi.org/stats.htm
:roflmao: :roflmao:

There's more in this link than just helmet statistics. Did anyone catch the table at the very bottom of the web page? It says that it is safer to bike that to live! WOOHOO

"Estimate of Fatal Risk by Activity

Activity # Fatalities per 1,000,000
exposure hours
------------------------------------------------
Skydiving 128.71
General Aviation 15.58
On-road Motorcycling 8.80
Scuba Diving 1.98
Living (all causes of death) 1.53
Swimming 1.07
Snowmobiling .88
Passenger cars .47
Water skiing .28
Bicycling .26
Flying (scheduled domestic airlines) .15
Hunting .08
Cosmic Radiation from
transcontinental flights .035
Home Living (active) .027
Traveling in a School Bus .022
Passenger Car Post-collision fire .017
Home Living, active & passive (sleeping) .014
Residential Fire .003


Data compiled by Failure Analysis Associates, Inc. (see Design News, 10-4-93)"

[closetbiker]

It was a comment about a possible cause of the statistics being so high in the four states. It's taken from my everyday observations of cyclists I see.

It may be what you feel about what you see, but it is still blaming entire groups of people for the actions of a few visable individuals of those groups. It's not a very effective way of indentifying or remedying a problem.

A definition for prejudice is a partiality that prevents objective consideration of an issue or situation, which is exactly what the problem is here.

It's fine that you feel whatever way you do, but it isn't helping this issue much. Remember, America is a country built by immigrants and unless you're a native American, you're an immigrant too. Let's keep to topic, not to immigration issues.

[Dchiefransom]

It may be what you feel about what you see, but it is still blaming entire groups of people for the actions of a few visable individuals of those groups. It's not a very effective way of indentifying or remedying a problem.

A definition for prejudice is a partiality that prevents objective consideration of an issue or situation, which is exactly what the problem is here.

It's fine that you feel whatever way you do, but it isn't helping this issue much. Remember, America is a country built by immigrants and unless you're a native American, you're an immigrant too. Let's keep to topic, not to immigration issues.

I WAS keeping to the topic. I referenced a variable that other other states are not as high in, which could indeed explain the high fatalities.
By the way, the Native Americans WERE NOT the first ones here, "The Ancient Ones", and "The People Who Came Before" were, and the "Native Americans killed them off, but I guess that wouldn't fit with the politically correct.

[closetbiker]

I WAS keeping to the topic. I referenced a variable that other other states are not as high in, which could indeed explain the high fatalities.

Yeah, I'm sure that's it. It's not that California, Florida, New York, and Texas rank # 1, 2, 3 & 4 in state population with the densest city populations involving the highest traffic concentrations or that 3 of the 4 have cycling weather all year round and a larger number of cyclists in the time of year that other parts of the country have none and maybe that might have something to do with the greatest number of cycling deaths. It must be the immigrants .



By the way, the Native Americans WERE NOT the first ones here, "The Ancient Ones", and "The People Who Came Before" were, and the "Native Americans killed them off, but I guess that wouldn't fit with the politically correct.

Still makes you an immigrant, and I could assume (by your own logic) you're part of the problem.


;)

[Martyr]

Marty: i will count the people with/without helmets for a week and post the results on this forum.

Monday Stats for a Melbourne route. A Reminder that Australia has uniform helmet laws, so even though we can exercise the freedom to choose not to wear a helmet, it often attracts a sizeable fine.

148 Total Riders
3 without helmet

Today was a public holiday but I decided to take the opp to get on the bike and lug some cloths and stuff to the office without stressing about getting to work for the first day of the new year. My route to the office is 20.75km along a shared use bike/ped path for most of the way. I ride from the middle suburbs to the centre of Melbourne's CBD.

Public holiday today so I was the only commuter amongst a lot of recreational riders. Nice day BTW, 28 degrees Celsius and fine. I counted only one way so that i didn't double count anyone.

of the 3 riders without helmets:
1 of the riders without a helmet was mid 20's.
1 of the riders was a 4 or 5y.o. on trainer wheels out with a parent (?)
the other rider was (in spite of the soft serve ice cream) a pretty tough looking teenager on BMX

Tomorrow I will be counting commuter traffic.

[Leo C. Driscoll]

Martyr, you must have had Dr. Michael Henderson, NSW, Australia, riding (with a helmet) behind you as you counted 145 riders with helmets and 3 without helmets! Now if you say you fancy Swan Gold (likely favourite brew of Dr. Henderson), this is a nice correlation ;-)

Henderson in 1995 did one of the first case studies of the effectiveness of helmets in collisions. His comprehensive study takes into account many of the variables that are not accounted for in most (purely stat) studies. http://www.bhsi.org/henderso.htm

Here's an excerpt taken from Section 5.5, "Case Comparison Studies".

"The best studies seek to evaluate helmet effectiveness by comparing cases with cases, outcomes with outcomes, and controlling for all variables except for helmet use....

"One of the best and most comprehensive of such [case comparison] studies has been the Australian one by McDermott et al (1993). They measured the effectiveness of bicycle helmets by studying crashes and injuries sustained by 1710 casualties treated at Melbourne and Geelong hospitals in 1987, 1988 and 1989. They compared causes of death and types and severity of injury for injured riders wearing standards-approved helmets (261), non-approved helmets (105) and no helmet (1344). The helmets used were all of the hard-shell type, and it was a subsample that was tested and reported upon by Williams (1991), as noted in section 5.4.

Male casualties outnumbered females four to one. Most casualties struck the ground first, and the second most commonly struck object was a motor vehicle. Five helmets came off because the retention system had not been fastened. Head injuries were significantly less frequent among wearers of Standards Australia-approved helmets (21.1 per cent) than unhelmeted casualties (34.8 per cent).

The relative proportion of head injury represented a reduction in head injury risk of 39 per cent. Excluding the helmets that were dislodged (the amended [Australian] standard makes dislodgment much less likely for modern helmets) gives an injury risk reduction of 45 per cent. Helmets were found not only to reduce the frequency of head injury but also the severity of injury, with wearers of approved helmets sustaining significantly shorter periods of unconsciousness. This has obvious, and favourable, implications for the prevention of brain injury and subsequent permanent impairment.

The McDermott et al (1993) study used as the control (comparison) group those cyclists who were treated for injury (or who died) when not wearing a helmet. As noted, and as the authors acknowledge, this sampling misses many of those wearers who avoided head injury because the helmet was effective, and therefore underestimates the risk reduction effect to an unknown extent. (This, it might be said, is a failing of nearly all studies of safety equipment that rely only on casualty data.) The 45 per cent reduction in injury risk calculated by McDermott et al should therefore be regarded as at the very bottom of the possible range. In order to overcome this possible bias, an earlier study in Seattle used a population-based control group, consisting of bicyclists who had had accidents, whether or not they were injured or sought hospital care (Thompson et al, 1989). In addition, these authors also used an emergency room control group, similar to that of McDermott et al (1993)......

"The two comparisons--with emergency room patients, and the population-based group--gave risk reduction estimates for helmet wearing of 74 per cent and 85 per cent respectively. Comparing this study with the McDermott et al study, the Seattle definition of "head injury" included face injuries, which accounted for 109 cases among their total 235 head-injury cases. McDermott et al adjusted for this and other definitions, and showed that the risk reduction effect shown in the Seattle study using the emergency-room controls is 61 per cent, compared to their [Australian study] 45 per cent. The Australian study included several times as many helmeted cyclists, which makes their conclusions rather more robust. However, the Seattle group's inclusion of a population-based control group gives strength to the overall conclusion that the risk reduction effect of helmets is even greater than shown by the comparisons using emergency-room patients as controls."

:roflmao: :roflmao:

[closetbiker]

Henderson in 1995 did one of the first case studies of the effectiveness of helmets in collisions...The relative proportion of head injury represented a reduction in head injury risk of 39 per cent. Excluding the helmets that were dislodged (the amended [Australian] standard makes dislodgment much less likely for modern helmets) gives an injury risk reduction of 45 per cent. Helmets were found not only to reduce the frequency of head injury but also the severity of injury, with wearers of approved helmets sustaining significantly shorter periods of unconsciousness. This has obvious, and favourable, implications for the prevention of brain injury and subsequent permanent impairment.......

"The two comparisons--with emergency room patients, and the population-based group--gave risk reduction estimates for helmet wearing of 74 per cent and 85 per cent respectively. Comparing this study with the McDermott et al study, the Seattle definition of "head injury" included face injuries, which accounted for 109 cases among their total 235 head-injury cases. McDermott et al adjusted for this and other definitions, and showed that the risk reduction effect shown in the Seattle study using the emergency-room controls is 61 per cent, compared to their [Australian study] 45 per cent. The Australian study included several times as many helmeted cyclists, which makes their conclusions rather more robust. However, the Seattle group's inclusion of a population-based control group gives strength to the overall conclusion that the risk reduction effect of helmets is even greater than shown by the comparisons using emergency-room patients as controls."

:roflmao: :roflmao:


Read question #13

[graydon]

I'm a free choice supporter. I also choose to wear a helmet, anyone who does not must not think much of their life.

I have a fairly extensive background in motor vehicle collisions, pedestrian and cycling collisions. I'm also a year-round bicycle commuter, don't own a car. I'm a Can-Bike National examiner in Canada and I teach over 100 people each year how to ride safer through Can-Bike II.

Cycling collisions are notoriously under-reported. Only the most serious make it to the statistics; This means these stats are severely skewed, and don't reflect all modes of cause of cycling collisions.

I believe over half of cycling collisions are when the cyclist falls of his/her bicycle, without any other contact except the ground. (These probably all go unreported, unless fatal) Still, an unprotected head hitting the ground from the height of a typical cycling position can easily be fatal. This is the single most important reason to wear a helmet, protect your head in case of a fall.

Car-bicycle collisions are reported to happen only about 17% of all cycling collisions. A car striking a cyclist at speed does not usually result in a fatality due to head injuries. The cyclist is propelled into the windshield or header and internal injuries are usually the cause (torn aorta). A helmet may help as you roll off the car onto the ground, but your probably already dead.

So don't think wearing a helmet will protect you against a car collision, it won't; Teaching proper riding skills and dealing with traffic situations is far more benefit than forcing people to wear helmets.

If governments are really serious about saving lives, start with making cigarettes illegal!

[Bekologist]

Closetbiker, you reference some individual's biased website who is 'opposed to helmet laws of any kind' as a defense against medical data compiled by researchers? what a joke. Helmets reduce injuries in crashes. Simple, empirical, proven fact. Leo Driscoll even introduced a Seattle study that sampled the population of cyclists that crashed and didn't require medical treatment, and you refer back to an anti-helmet web post?

On a personal note, I crashed New Years Eve, went down rounding a corner on black ice (after not encountering any in the first hour of the ride) my (helmeted) head hit the ground hard, but what hurts today is my shoulder and hip, not my head.

Anone who is swayed by Closetbikers anti helmet posts is thick headed, indeed.

[closetbiker]

Closetbiker, you reference some individual's biased website who is 'opposed to helmet laws of any kind' as a defense against medical data compiled by researchers? what a joke.

I think it's a joke if you can't read and understand it's not an individual's site and think it doesn't have medical data compiled by researchers. Makes me wonder about your comprehension skills. I'm also dismayed you think each of us can't read and decide for ourselves what makes more sense to ourselves as individuals.

[Mars]

Thanks to graydon for the informed and important comment. In a study posted above (Denver, I think) only half of the cyclists admitted to hospital for injuries had head trauma. Sarcasm to follow :) Therefore, to prevent the imminent injuries that we all face, I propose legislation to require all cyclists to wear that white plastic armour that the Imperial Storm Troopers wear in Star Wars. One would have to be thick headed to not see the benefits of full body protection while participating in such a dangerous activity.

No data to suggest the armour works? Who cares! It is obvious to anyone with "common sense" that it will reduce injuries. No evidence that cycling is all that dagerous in the first place? Shut up! Anyone can see that it is dangerous, why just the other day my uncle's friend's daughter was riding her bike and fell and got 9 stitches. The emergency room workers said if she had armour on, she wouldn't have been injured. In fact, I fell after hitting a RR track wrong. If I had armour on, I wouldn't have been hurt and I wouldn't have torn my jacket either.

I estimate that armour will eliminate 87.65% of injuries from car/cyclist collisions.

If you get hurt riding your bike without armour on, you will burdening the health care system and I hope the ambulance leaves you laying in the ditch where you belong.

Oh, and if armour saves just one life, it will all be worthwhile.

[Roody]

Yeah, I'm sure that's it. It's not that California, Florida, New York, and Texas rank # 1, 2, 3 & 4 in state population with the densest city populations involving the highest traffic concentrations or that 3 of the 4 have cycling weather all year round and a larger number of cyclists in the time of year that other parts of the country have none and maybe that might have something to do with the greatest number of cycling deaths. ;)
This is exactly right. This entire thread was based on obviously faulty statistical assumptions. Why did it take this long for someone to point out the obvious? Thank you, closetbiker.

[closetbiker]

Why did it take this long for someone to point out the obvious?

This is the key issue here, it's obvious. I think the big picture often gets forgotten. I don't think anyone is trying to be mean, or malicious, it's concern that has just been misguided. Of course, that's just my opinion.