Fatalities involving bicycles: a non-random population.
Bicycle riders constitute a small subgroup of all roadway deaths. Bicycle/motor vehicle collision fatalities are less frequent than pedestrian/motor vehicle fatalities. Studies have shown that non-fatal injuries of bicyclists are not randomly distributed, but follow age and sex trends that differ in the U.S. and Scandinavia. Although the bicycle-related fatalities reviewed herein do not constitute a complete profile of all such cases within our geographic area, review of these cases does provide insight into the non-random population of fatally injured cyclists in urban and rural America. A retrospective demographic and forensic medical review of 36 bicycle-related fatalities was done to clarify features of this non-random population. Consistent features including age and sex, patterned injuries and risk-taking behavior are discussed. Three of 24 (12%) adult cyclists died of homicidal gunshot wounds.
Hawley
D A
DA
Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, USA.
Clark
M A
MA
Pless
J E
JE
D000063:Accidents, Traffic / Q000401:mortality*; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001642:Bicycling / Q000293:injuries* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006708:Homicide; D006801:Humans; D007196:Indiana / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male