{"id":256057546,"date":"2013-02-11T15:05:46","date_gmt":"2013-02-11T15:05:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.baltimorespokes.org\/?p=256057546"},"modified":"2013-02-11T15:05:46","modified_gmt":"2013-02-11T15:05:46","slug":"rebutting-helmets-reduce-head-injuries-by-85","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.baltimorespokes.org\/?p=256057546","title":{"rendered":"Rebutting helmets reduce head injuries by 85%"},"content":{"rendered":"

Key paragraphs from the article: https:\/\/www.thewashcycle.com\/2013\/02\/bike-helmets-reduce-injuries-by-about-10-20.html<\/a><\/p>\n

The best way to know the effectiveness of a drug or helmet is to get a
\nrepresentative sample of the population, and then randomly assign them to
\nthe test group or the control group. Such an experiment allows one to
\nreliably estimate effectiveness subject to a statistical margin of error.
\nBut we don\u2019t know who will be involved in a crash, and if we did, it would
\nbe unethical to tell them whether to wear a helmet. Instead, researchers
\ncollect data after the fact.<\/p>\n

In 1989, Thompson et al. obtained data from Seattle hospitals for two
\ngroups of cyclists who went to the hospital after a crash. Only 7% of the
\nfirst group wore a helmet, and they all had head injuries. But 24% of the
\nsecond group wore helmets, and none of them had head injuries. Assuming
\nthat both groups were the same except for the type of injury they
\nexperienced, these results imply that helmets reduced head injuries by
\n75%. Thompson et al. realized that the two groups were different, ran
\nregression analysis on the data to isolate the effects of helmets and
\nfound that helmets were even more effective: 85%.<\/p>\n

That study led the researchers to start saying two things that have almost
\nbecome mantras among many public safety advocates: \u201cHelmets reduce head
\ninjuries by 85%\u201d and \u201cThe most important thing you can do to be safe on a
\nbike is wear a helmet.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the last 24 years, similar studies have found that helmets reduce head
\ninjuries, but to a less extent than in the Seattle Study. A comprehensive
\nsynthesis of all studies in 2001 estimated 53-63% effectiveness, but
\nbecause helmets increase neck injuries, the net effectiveness is 41–0%.
\nStudies in the last decade have estimated that helmets only prevent 20-40%
\nof potential head injuries, so the most recent synthesis of all studies
\never published finds the helmets reduce head injuries by 30–50% and total
\ninjuries by 10-20%, when you include the increased neck injuries. But we
\nstill hear the refrain \u201chelmets reduce injuries up to 85%!\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Key paragraphs from the article: https:\/\/www.thewashcycle.com\/2013\/02\/bike-helmets-reduce-injuries-by-about-10-20.html The best way to know the effectiveness of a drug or helmet is to get a representative sample of the population, and then randomly assign them to the test group or the control group. Such an experiment allows one to reliably estimate effectiveness subject to a statistical margin of … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Rebutting helmets reduce head injuries by 85%”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"1","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-256057546","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bike-laws"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.baltimorespokes.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/256057546","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.baltimorespokes.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.baltimorespokes.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.baltimorespokes.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.baltimorespokes.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=256057546"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wp.baltimorespokes.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/256057546\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.baltimorespokes.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=256057546"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.baltimorespokes.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=256057546"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.baltimorespokes.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=256057546"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}