Article ID: | iaor20108231 |
Volume: | 43 |
Issue: | 1 |
Start Page Number: | 40 |
End Page Number: | 48 |
Publication Date: | Jan 2011 |
Journal: | Accident Analysis and Prevention |
Authors: | Egger Matthias, Spoerri Adrian, von Elm Erik |
Keywords: | transportation: road |
Road traffic accidents (RTA) are an important cause of premature death. We examined socio‐demographic and geographical determinants of RTA mortality in Switzerland by linking 2000 census data to RTA mortality records 2000–2005 (ICD‐10 codes V00–V99). Data from 5.5 million residents aged 18–94 years, 1744 study areas, and 1620 RTA deaths were analyzed, including 978 deaths (60.4%) in motor vehicle occupants, 254 (15.7%) in motorcyclists, 107 (6.6%) in cyclists, and 259 (16.0%) in pedestrians. Weibull survival models and Bayesian methods were used to calculate hazard ratios (HR), and standardized mortality ratios (SMR) across study areas. Prevention efforts should aim to reduce inequities across socio‐demographic and educational groups, and across geographical areas, with interventions targeted at high‐risk groups and areas, and different traffic users, including pedestrians. Adjusted HR comparing women with men ranged from 0.04 (95% CI 0.02–0.07) in motorcyclists to 0.43 (95% CI 0.32–0.56) in pedestrians. There was a