Alcohol and Road Accidents Involving Pedestrians as Unprotected Road Users
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than half of all road fatalities involve vulnerable road users, i.e., pedestrians, cyclists, and motorcyclists. Poland is classified as one of the European Union (EU) countries marked by low road safety, with a higher frequency of accidents invo...
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doaj-bf29550668884a6baabb198ec9069a442020-12-03T00:03:22ZengMDPI AGInternational Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health1661-78271660-46012020-12-01178995899510.3390/ijerph17238995Alcohol and Road Accidents Involving Pedestrians as Unprotected Road UsersDorota Lasota0Ahmed Al-Wathinani1Paweł Krajewski2Krzysztof Goniewicz3Witold Pawłowski4Department of Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology, Medical University of Warsaw, 02097 Warsaw, PolandDepartment of Emergency Medical Services, Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz College for Emergency Medical Services, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi ArabiaDepartment of Forensic Medicine, Medical University of Warsaw, 00-001 Warsaw, PolandDepartment of Aviation Security, Military University of Aviation, 08-521 Dęblin, PolandDepartment of Emergency Medicine, Medical University of Lublin, 20-081 Lublin, PolandAccording to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than half of all road fatalities involve vulnerable road users, i.e., pedestrians, cyclists, and motorcyclists. Poland is classified as one of the European Union (EU) countries marked by low road safety, with a higher frequency of accidents involving pedestrians compared to other EU countries (31% of all fatalities). Among unprotected road users, a significant group of victims are pedestrians, who are often under the influence of alcohol. This study aims to analyze the impact of alcohol on the risk of occurrence and consequences of road accidents among pedestrians. The source of data was the medical documentation of the Department of Forensic Medicine of the Medical University of Warsaw. In more than half of pedestrian deaths, the presence of alcohol was found; regardless of the place of the event and the place of death, among the victims under the influence of alcohol, males dominated; the average age of the victims under the influence of alcohol was significantly lower compared to the average age of sober victims, with younger victims being significantly more likely to die at the scene of the accident, especially in rural areas; significantly higher alcohol concentrations were found in males, in victims who died at the scene of the accident, and with victims of accidents in rural areas. Among pedestrian traffic accident fatalities, the most numerous group comprised young men under the influence of alcohol. In rural areas, a higher percentage of pedestrian victims died at the scene as a result of excessive alcohol consumption. These areas should be subject to intensive preventive measures to increase the safety of pedestrians as unprotected road users.https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/23/8995alcoholethanolpedestrianstraffic accidents |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Dorota Lasota Ahmed Al-Wathinani Paweł Krajewski Krzysztof Goniewicz Witold Pawłowski |
spellingShingle |
Dorota Lasota Ahmed Al-Wathinani Paweł Krajewski Krzysztof Goniewicz Witold Pawłowski Alcohol and Road Accidents Involving Pedestrians as Unprotected Road Users International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health alcohol ethanol pedestrians traffic accidents |
author_facet |
Dorota Lasota Ahmed Al-Wathinani Paweł Krajewski Krzysztof Goniewicz Witold Pawłowski |
author_sort |
Dorota Lasota |
title |
Alcohol and Road Accidents Involving Pedestrians as Unprotected Road Users |
title_short |
Alcohol and Road Accidents Involving Pedestrians as Unprotected Road Users |
title_full |
Alcohol and Road Accidents Involving Pedestrians as Unprotected Road Users |
title_fullStr |
Alcohol and Road Accidents Involving Pedestrians as Unprotected Road Users |
title_full_unstemmed |
Alcohol and Road Accidents Involving Pedestrians as Unprotected Road Users |
title_sort |
alcohol and road accidents involving pedestrians as unprotected road users |
publisher |
MDPI AG |
series |
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health |
issn |
1661-7827 1660-4601 |
publishDate |
2020-12-01 |
description |
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than half of all road fatalities involve vulnerable road users, i.e., pedestrians, cyclists, and motorcyclists. Poland is classified as one of the European Union (EU) countries marked by low road safety, with a higher frequency of accidents involving pedestrians compared to other EU countries (31% of all fatalities). Among unprotected road users, a significant group of victims are pedestrians, who are often under the influence of alcohol. This study aims to analyze the impact of alcohol on the risk of occurrence and consequences of road accidents among pedestrians. The source of data was the medical documentation of the Department of Forensic Medicine of the Medical University of Warsaw. In more than half of pedestrian deaths, the presence of alcohol was found; regardless of the place of the event and the place of death, among the victims under the influence of alcohol, males dominated; the average age of the victims under the influence of alcohol was significantly lower compared to the average age of sober victims, with younger victims being significantly more likely to die at the scene of the accident, especially in rural areas; significantly higher alcohol concentrations were found in males, in victims who died at the scene of the accident, and with victims of accidents in rural areas. Among pedestrian traffic accident fatalities, the most numerous group comprised young men under the influence of alcohol. In rural areas, a higher percentage of pedestrian victims died at the scene as a result of excessive alcohol consumption. These areas should be subject to intensive preventive measures to increase the safety of pedestrians as unprotected road users. |
topic |
alcohol ethanol pedestrians traffic accidents |
url |
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/23/8995 |
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