A Prospective Study on Pedestrian Injuries in an Urban Australian Population

Abstract

Pedestrian injuries are associated with substantial morbidity, mortality and cost, with very little published work on this topic in Australasia over recent years. The objective of this study was to examine the demographics, injury profile, relationship with alcohol and intoxication, motor vehicle, and environmental factors of pedestrian versus motor vehicle collisions (MVC) in a central city hospital in Sydney. The method comprised a descriptive study with structured questionnaire of 35 pedestrians involved in a MVC admitted to a tertiary hospital in inner-city Sydney over a five-month period, during which 97 pedestrians involved in injuries were treated. The mean age was 48.5±19.7 years, and 65.7% were females. Mean emergency length of stay (LOS) was 8.9±6.5 hours, with a trend towards longer LOS for older patients (11.0 vs. 6.71 hours, p=0.056). Peak injuries occurred between 1500-1800 on weekdays, and 1800-0300 on weekends, with 53% occurring at sites other than a crossing. Twenty per cent of those injured had pre-existing disabilities involving gaitabnormality. Dark-coloured clothing worn above the waist was associated with MVCs at night-time. Alcohol consumption was associated with a higher cost of radiological investigations and length of stay, resulting in an estimated additional $7755 per hospital admission. This study demonstrates that readily defined and clinically relevant characteristics are associated with pedestrian injuries in an urban Australian population. Pedestrian intoxication is associated with increased utilisation of hospital resources contributing to the burden on health systems. This information may be used to help design effective public health strategies to educate the community on the cost of care.