Accidentes viales de los motociclistas en México: subgrupos y factores de riesgo

Abstract

Motorcycling as a means of transportation has grown rapidly in Mexico. In the last decade, the number of motorcycles increased 338.05%, which means that motorbikes represent 5.97% of the total number of vehicles in the country. During this period, however, the annual average shows that 3.16% of motorcyclists had an accident, which is proof that motorcycle riders are vulnerable users with high risks in terms of road safety. The objective of this research is to identify the subgroups of motorcyclers with higher accident risks and to identify risk factors. The sample for the quantitative study included all motorbike riders who died or were injured as a result of a reported road accident, between 2000 and 2014. The sample was obtained using the database at the National Institute for Statistics and Geography and the General Direction of Health Information. Descriptive variables were determined for all the categories and were matched to the death cause to find statistical correlation. These systems of information registrered, during 2014 in Mexico, more than 41,881 accidents and 826 deaths caused by motorcycle accident. The highest number of accidents involved men (P<0.001) between 20 and 30 years old, where 20.55% had head injuries and only 16.59% of bikers were wearing a helmet at the time of the accident. This combination – age 20-30, male gender and not wearing a helmet – seems to be a powerful risk factor. However, accidents are largely underreported due to the fact that the format used to receive attention after suffering a violent attack or injury (SIS-SS-127-P) does not include the motorcycle as an agent of injury. For this reason, it is of the utmost importance to create a reliable statistical system and promote a good road safety culture together with protective factors and safety equipment. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4995/CIT2016.2016.2172