Observed relationships between driver and passenger restraint use in the front and rear seats.

Objective: Seat belt usage has increased substantially since the 1960s, yet driver use continues to affect passenger usage. Recent observational restraint use findings for Maryland will examine the relationship between driver and passenger usage, including adults and children in the rear seat.

Methods: Analyses were based on observational front and rear seat studies administered in parallel from 2016 to 2019.

Variability in antemortem and postmortem blood alcohol concentration levels among fatally injured adults.

Excessive alcohol use is a risk factor for injury-related deaths. Postmortem blood samples are commonly used to approximate antemortem blood alcohol concentration (BAC) levels. To assess differences between antemortem and postmortem BACs among fatally injured adults admitted to one shock trauma center (STC).

S-100β does not predict outcome after mild traumatic brain injury.

Objective: To determine the usefulness of S-100β, a marker for central nervous system damage, in the prediction of long-term outcomes after mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI) Hypothesis: Mid- and long-term outcomes of MTBI (i.e. 3, 6 and 12 months post-injury and return-to-work or school (RTWS)) may be predicted based on pre-injury and injury factors as well as S-100β.

Trauma patients with a previous organ transplant: outcomes are better than expected-a retrospective analysis.

Background: Few reports are available concerning outcomes following trauma in transplanted patients. Investigating outcomes for patients in this population may yield helpful information about both immunosuppression and inflammatory responses.

Methods: This was a retrospective study.

Is there any correlation between binding and functional effects at the translocator protein (TSPO) (18 kDa)?

The translocator protein (TSPO) is a potential drug target for the treatment of CNS diseases, with TSPO ligands being able to modulate steroidogenesis, apoptosis, and cell proliferation. While there exist multiple TSPO binding sites, the nature of these sites--either overlapping or allosterically linked--remains largely uncharacterized. Furthermore, while evidence suggests that microglial activation and polymerization result in changes to TSPO binding sites, these changes are poorly understood.

Prescription medication usage and crash culpability in a population of injured drivers.

Unlabelled: There has been increasing concern regarding the role of prescription drug use in the causation of traffic crashes. The goal of this research is to describe the prevalence of prescription drug use among injured trauma patients and determine the association between classes of drugs and crash culpability, a surrogate measure of crash risk.

Methods: Patient records, including chronic medication usage, for all drivers admitted to a trauma center following a traffic collision in 2008 (N=1,558) were linked with police crash reports to determine crash culpability.

Impulsive or depressive personality traits do not impede behavioral change after brief alcohol interventions.

The authors investigated whether impulsivity and depression affect the success of interventions to reduce alcohol use. Unadjusted and adjusted regression models were constructed to analyze the effect of impulsivity and depression on 12-month outcomes of participants of a trauma center based randomized trial of brief personalized motivational interventions versus information and advice. Of 497 problem drinkers enrolled in the program, 248 completed the 12-month follow-up.

Early predictors of postconcussive syndrome in a population of trauma patients with mild traumatic brain injury.

Purpose: The purpose of this analysis was to determine which of the initial symptoms after mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI) can best predict the development of persistent postconcussive syndrome (PCS).

Methods: One hundred eighty MTBI patients admitted to a level I trauma center were enrolled in a prospective study and 110 followed for 3 months. MTBI was defined as a Glasgow Coma Score of 13 to 15 with a transient loss of consciousness or report of being dazed or confused.

A controlled trial of brief intervention versus brief advice for at-risk drinking trauma center patients.

Background: Numerous reports document that preinjury alcohol use is associated with all modes of injury requiring treatment in a trauma center, with 25% to 50% or more of patients testing positive for alcohol at the time of admission. There is evidence that in trauma patients unaddressed alcohol use problems result in recurrent injury requiring readmission to a trauma center and/or death.

Methods: A randomized clinical trial was conducted to assess the effectiveness of two types of brief interventions to reduce drinking and the consequences of drinking.

Autopsy study of motorcyclist fatalities: the effect of the 1992 Maryland motorcycle helmet use law.

Objectives: This study sought to determine the impact of Maryland's all-rider motorcycle helmet law (enacted on October 1, 1992) on preventing deaths and traumatic brain injuries among motorcyclists.

Methods: Statewide motorcyclist fatalities occurring during seasonally comparable 33-month periods immediately preceding and following enactment of the law were compared.

Results: The motorcyclist fatality rate dropped from 10.