Incidence of Ocular Injuries from Road Traffic Accidents after Introduction of Seat Belt Legislation

Abstract

A prospective study was performed to characterize any change in the pattern of ocular injuries following the introduction of compulsory front seat belt wear on 1 February 1983. During a 24-week period in 1981 (1 February to 31 July), 24 patients with eye and adnexal injuries as a result of motor car road traffic accidents (RTAs) were seen at the Bristol Eye Hospital: 12 of these patients required emergency surgery. In the identical period two years later (1 February to 31 July 1983), only 6 patients suffered ocular injury from RTAs: 3 of these required emergency surgery. All patients in the latter series obeying the legislation on seat belt use were injured by flying glass, indicating a possible change in pattern of injury. The decrease in incidence of ocular injuries from RTAs between the two series was shown to be statistically significant. The compulsory fitting of laminated glass to all new cars in Great Britain and Europe is strongly advised.

Prevalence of ocular and orbital injuries in polytrauma patients

“…Unfortunately, it was not possible to establish whether the patients were wearing seatbelts in all the cases due to incomplete information in patients' notes, therefore we cannot comment on this aspect. Nonetheless, studies have confirmed an abrupt decline in eye injuries after the introduction of compulsory seatbelt legislation and showed higher risk for open globe injury in males driving without seatbelt [9,10]. Airbagassociated ocular trauma has also been reported, especially in cases where a seatbelt was not used by drivers, but the benefits of airbag use clearly prevail over the risk of eye injury [11].…”

Spectrum of Ocular Injuries in Children with Major Trauma

“…[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15]18 In a large trauma hospital-based adult study from Australia, Poon 2 recorded a 58% incidence of orbital wall fracture and a 4.4% incidence of open injury to the eyeball and the ocular adnexa in adults with major trauma (ISS Ͼ 15). Making no reference to ISS data, Grin, 3 from the Wills Eye Hospital, recorded a 4% incidence of orbital fracture and a 34% incidence of perforating injury to the ocular tissue in children.…”

Simultaneous injuries to both eyes in traffic accidents

“…New construction solutions have been developed in the car industry for ensuring high security of passengers in the case of traffic accidents, consequently reducing the number of injuries. Among other developments, seat belts are provided for all seats [1], windshield glass, rear mirrors and door glass are made by special technology, leading to lower hazard in car crash [2], and air-bags are built-in as well [3][4][5].…”