Introduction: Recent increases in road crashes have reversed New Zealand's formerly declining crash rates to produce annual fatal and serious injury counts that are 49% higher than the lowest rates achieved in 2013.
Method: We model twenty-one factors in fatal and serious injury crashes, four years before and after 2013 using logistic regression. Three major factors are significantly different in the period after 2013, when crash rates increased: (1) alcohol as a cause, (2) learner licence holders, and (3) a regional effect for Auckland. Newly defined speed zones are a more common setting for crashes in the period of upturn but there is no coinciding elevated likelihood of 'speed as a causal factor'. Three factors related to road safety were less common: aged under 25-years old, fatigue, and not wearing a seatbelt.
Results: Results are compared to rates of prosecutions for alcohol-related driving offences over this period. It is possible that New Zealand's successful road safety initiatives of the past have been undermined by reduced levels of enforcement and an unexpected outcome from the graduated driving licence system.
In the Netherlands and all over the world, traffic safety problem has been growing particularly for cyclists over the last decades with more people shifting to cycling as a healthy and sustainable mode of transport. Literature shows that age is an important factor in crash involvement and consequences; however, few studies identify the risk factors for cyclists from across different age groups. Therefore, this study aims to identify and understand the effects of traffic, infrastructure, and land use factors on vehicle-to-bike injury and fatal crashes involving cyclists from different age groups.
Importance: Injuries from firearms and motor vehicle crashes (MVCs) are the leading causes of death among US children and youths aged 0 to 19 years. Examining the intersections of age group, sex, race, and ethnicity is essential to focus prevention efforts.
Objective: To examine firearm and motor vehicle fatality rates by population subgroups and analyze changes over time.
There is increasing use of veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VA ECMO) during lung transplants, but protocols and outcomes are not yet standardized.
The article discusses the rationale behind using VA ECMO, its protocols, applications, and overall impact on patient outcomes during lung transplantation.
Evidence indicates that routine use of VA ECMO can reduce complications and improve early outcomes by enabling controlled reperfusion and preventing hemodynamic crises, but more research is needed for consensus on its best application.
Clinical Director, Te Manawa Taki Trauma System, Te Whatu Ora - Health New Zealand Waikato, Hamilton, Aotearoa New Zealand; Honorary Associate Professor, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, Surgery, University of Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand.
Aim: To examine the ethnic variations in trauma hospitalisations in a health region of Aotearoa New Zealand over a 10-year period.
Methods: A retrospective, observational study utilised data from the Te Manawa Taki (TMT) regional trauma registry to identify individuals of all ages and injury severities who were hospitalised due to injuries between 2013 and 2022. This investigation focusses on the epidemiology of trauma, examining factors such as ethnicity, gender, Injury Severity Score (ISS) and injury characteristics.
Background: Frozen road conditions could be a factor in road traffic injuries, and seasonality and urbanisation level are potential influencing factors. However, few studies have considered this relationship. Therefore, we examined the effect of frozen road conditions on road traffic injury rates and the differences across seasons and urbanisation levels.
