Bicycle helmet use by children. Evaluation of a community-wide helmet campaign.
To assess the effect of a community-wide bicycle helmet campaign on helmet use, we observed 9827 children riding bicycles at sites in high-, middle-, and low-income census tracts in Seattle, Wash (intervention city), and Portland, Ore (control city); observations were made during 2-week intervals before and 4, 12, and 16 months after the campaign's start. Helmet use increased from 5.5% before the campaign to 15.7% afterward in Seattle and from 1.0% to 2.9% in Portland. Strong associations were found between helmet use and white compared with black or other race; riding geared vs nongeared bicycles; riding at playgrounds, in parks, or on bicycle paths vs on city streets; and riding with adults or other children compared with riding alone. The proportions of helmet wearers, adjusted for these variables, increased from 4.6% to 14.0% in Seattle and from 1.0% to 3.6% in Portland, a significantly greater increase in use in Seattle compared with Portland. We conclude that a community-wide bicycle helmet campaign can increase helmet use among children.
DiGuiseppi
C G
CG
Children's National Medical Center, George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Washington, DC.
Rivara
F P
FP
Koepsell
T D
TD
Polissar
L
L
D000293:Adolescent; D001642:Bicycling / Q000293:injuries*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D006259:Craniocerebral Trauma / Q000517:prevention & control*; D003625:Data Collection; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D005260:Female; D006260:Head Protective Devices / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006293:Health Promotion; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011482:Protective Devices / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012574:Schools; D014861:Washington