title: Determinants of safety helmet use among motorcyclists in Kerala, India.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Motorcycles account for a large proportion of road traffic accidents in India and the riders of these vehicles run a high risk of injuries or death. This study aims to explore the determinants of helmet use among motorcyclists in Kerala, India.
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional study conducted in Kerala, India, over a period of six months. 309 motorcyclists in Kerala were interviewed for this study using a pretested structured questionnaire.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among 309 motorcyclists, 80% were less than 40 years of age, and only 24% were females. Among the total, only 31.4% used a helmet. There was a statistically significant association between the use of helmet and gender, marital status, drunken driving, use of alcohol and attitude towards implementing legislative measures. Odds Ratios observed were 5.3 for female gender compared to male, 4.5 for those with a positive attitude towards the implementation of legislative measures on helmet use, 3.7 for those who were not drunk while driving and 2.3 for unmarried compared to married persons.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The study concludes that the determinants associated with the practice of helmet use were gender, drunken driving, marital status and positive attitude towards legal measures. ‎
authors.affiliation: Research Division, Gulf Medical University, Ajman, UAE. jayadevans@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Jayadevan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sreedharan
authors.forename: Jayakumary
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Muttappillymyalil
authors.forename: Binoo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Divakaran
authors.forename: Jeesha C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Haran
mesh_terms: D000063:Accidents, Traffic / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D001294:Attitude to Health; D006259:Craniocerebral Trauma / Q000517:prevention & control; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006260:Head Protective Devices / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D007194:India / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D009049:Motorcycles / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012307:Risk Factors; D012449:Safety; D017678:Sex Distribution; D055815:Young Adult