Injury Patterns among Motorcyclist Trauma Patients: A Cross Sectional Study on 4200 Patients

Background: Motorcyclists are among the most vulnerable groups of road accident victims, who are prone to a growingmortality rate due to the constant rise in the number of accidents. This study was performed to investigate the injurypatterns among motorcyclist trauma patients admitted to Kamyab Hospital, the largest trauma center affiliated withMashhad Univercity of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran, due to an accident.Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on motorcyclists referred to our hospital due to accidents fromAugust 23, 2014 to August 22, 2016 to receive treatment. After the accurate examination of the collected data andcorrection of the potential errors, they were subjected to analysis. The gathered data included the demographicvariables, injury pattern, accident time, and accident type. Data analysis was performed in Stata Software, version 12.Results: A total of 4,205 motorcycle accident cases were hospitalized (14% of all cases were hospitalized during thetwo-year study period). The mean age of the patients was 30 years, and 88% of them were male (a male to female ratioof 7.3). Car- and pedestrian-motorcycle collisions were the most common causes of injury that accounted for 68% and22% of the cases, respectively. The head was the most commonly injured site of the body; in this regard, 59.7% of theadmitted patients and 85.4% of total death cases had a head injury. In addition, 67% of the target population receivedtrauma in more than two parts of their body. The elbow, arm, and hip were the least regions involved.Conclusion: Motorcycle accidents cause severe physical injuries to the patients’ body. Head injury was the mostcommon type of trauma, leading to a wide range of disabilities. Therefore, the use of crash helmets and avoidance ofdangerous driving behaviors will remarkably decrease such trauma.Level of evidence: IV