TS04 THE TWO‐WHEEL DEAL C PATTERN OF SEVERE INJURIES IN ACCIDENTS INVOLVING MOTORCYCLISTS

Abstract

Purpose: To determine the pattern of severe injuries (AIS greater than 3) in accidents involving motorcyclists in relation to the mechanism of impact (MOI) suffered.Methodology: 518 motorcyclists involved in accidents who were brought to the Emergency Department (ED) of Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Singapore over a two‐year period were included in the study. MOI, injury severity, distribution and mortality were analyzed. MOI was divided into four groups: frontal impact, rear impact, side impact and skid. Injuries were divided into 8 groups: head, face, thorax, abdomen, pelvis, upper and lower limbs and spine and correlated with MOI.Results: Patients were 15–80 years of age with an ISS ranging from 3–75 (mean 15.25 ± 9). Mortality was 7.19%. Head injuries contributed to the majority of deaths in all four MOIs. Distinct patterns of injury were seen in the four MOI. The four common injuries in all the MOIs were head, upper limb, lower limb and thorax. Frontal impact contributed to the greatest incidence of facial fractures, abdominal injuries and upper limb fractures, while skid impact contributed to the greatest incidence of head, thoracic and thoracolumbar spine injuries. Rear impact contributed to the highest incidence of abdominal, lower limb and cervical spine injuries and side impact contributed to thorax, pelvis and lower limb injuries.Conclusion: Motorcycle accidents, are a common vehicular accident with high incidence of severe injuries. Initial analysis shows that the four MOI produce distinct patterns of injuries. This knowledge may be useful for planning for resource activation and allocation in such injuries.