25, 50 & 75 years ago Twenty-five years ago

摘要

The records of all cases of injury to the cervical spine sustained in road crashes for the 6-year period (1 January 1981 to 31 December 1986) which were admitted to the spinal injuries unit of the Royal Adelaide Hospital to the Adelaide Children's Hospital, or were identified at post-mortem examination were examined and the relevant data extracted. There were 291 cases in the non-fatal group and 161 in the fatal group. These represent a complete enumeration of all such patients in the state of South Australia over the 6-year period, given that up to 50% of cervical injuries in fatal cases can be missed. Comparison of the two groups showed that the fatal group had a much higher proportion of pedestrians, and persons over 50 years of age. About one-half of the fatal group had injuries at the level of Cl or the atlanto-occipital articulation.