Motorcycle-related trauma in Alberta: a sad and expensive story.

Background: Trauma caused by motorcycle-related injuries is extensive, expensive and increasing. Recent American literature reported that in 2004 the chance of a motorcyclist dying was 34 times greater than that for someone using any other motor vehicle for every mile travelled. In the United Kingdom a motorcyclist is killed or seriously injured every 665,894 km, compared with 18,661,626 km for cars.