A comparison of the effect of different bicycle helmet laws in 3 New York City suburbs.
OBJECTIVE
This study was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of 3 different bicycle helmet laws.


METHODS
A direct observational study of nearly 1000 cyclists at 20 matched sites in each of 3 contiguous counties--Rockland and Westchester in New York and Fairfield in Connecticut--was carried out. Rockland's bicycle helmet law requires approved helmets for all cyclists regardless of age; Westchester's, by state law, requires cyclists younger than 14 years to wear helmets; and Fairfield's, also by state law, requires cyclists younger than 12 years to wear helmets when riding on highways.


RESULTS
Rockland cyclists had the highest helmet use rate (35%), followed by Westchester (24%) and Fairfield (14%) cyclists. As a subgroup, teenagers used helmets least, a trend that was seen in all 3 counties.


CONCLUSIONS
Our study suggests a positive effect of bicycle helmet legislation with no age limitation.
Puder
D R
DR
Department of Pediatrics, Nyack Hospital, NY, USA.
Visintainer
P
P
Spitzer
D
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Casal
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D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001265:Athletic Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D001642:Bicycling; D002648:Child; D006259:Craniocerebral Trauma / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D005260:Female; D006260:Head Protective Devices / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D009519:New York City / Q000453:epidemiology; D018881:Suburban Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*