Families bereaved by road traffic crashes: linkage of mortality records with 1971-2001 censuses.
OBJECTIVE
To estimate the number of people alive in England & Wales who have lost a close family member in a fatal road traffic crash.


METHODS
Linkage of mortality records in a sample of 1.1% of the population during 1971-2005 with records from the 1971, 1981, 1991 and 2001 censuses. For each person killed in a road traffic crash, the number of close family members still alive in 2005 was estimated by applying life table probabilities of survival.


METHODS
England & Wales, UK.


METHODS
Adults and children killed in road traffic crashes 1971-2005.


METHODS
Number of close family members alive in 2005.


RESULTS
In a sample of approximately 1.1% of the population in 1971-2005, a total of 1801 adults and children died in road traffic crashes. These deaths left 6467 close family members bereaved in 2005, corresponding to a total of 590 518 bereaved in the population (including 131 399 parents who had lost a child and 107 384 offspring who had lost a parent).


CONCLUSIONS
Over 1% of the population of England & Wales alive in 2005 had lost a close family member in a fatal road traffic crash since 1971. This may imply a greater public health burden of road traffic crashes than previously estimated.
Sullivan
R
R
Department of Epidemiology and Population Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London WC1E 7HT, UK.
Edwards
P
P
Sloggett
A
A
Marshall
C E
CE
D000063:Accidents, Traffic / Q000401:mortality*; D000328:Adult; D001601:Bereavement; D019352:Censuses; D002648:Child; D017281:Cost of Illness; D004739:England / Q000453:epidemiology; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008498:Medical Record Linkage; D014852:Wales / Q000453:epidemiology; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000401:mortality* / Q000517:prevention & control