Lower extremity injuries in automobile crashes†

Abstract

The new United States National Crash Severity Study (NCSS) data on tow-away automobile crashes was reviewed to determine the details of the more severe injuries of the lower extremity. This review includes the frequency of injury by limb segments (pelvis, thigh, knee, leg and ankle/foot), the vehicle structure contacted to produce these injuries, and the injuries/contact differences among car occupants. Some of the finds are: of the various body regions having the more severe injuries, the lower extremity ranks second only to the thorax; lap-shoulder belted occupants hardly ever sustain the more severe lower extremity injuries; and severe lower extremity injuries occur primarily in frontal crashes. Extrapolation of the NCSS data for national estimates indicates that the more serious lower extremity injuries in car crash survivors approximately equals the total number of passenger car occupants who are killed annually (27,000).