ALCOHOL INTAKE AND SEVERITY OF INJURIES ON HIGHWAYS IN MEXICO - A COMPARATIVE-ANALYSIS

Aims. To analyze the association between alcohol intake and the severi ty of injuries sustained from traffic accidents on a Mexican highway. Design. An observational unit evaluated drivers involved in auto accid ents. Setting. Mexico-Cuernavaca Highway, Mexico. A 60 km-long road wi th many altitude variations and sharp curves. Participants. Three hund red and eighty-six drivers involved in traffic accidents between March and September, 1994. Measurements. A questionnaire was applied to the driver, an occupant or witness at the site of the accident to collect information about the driver, vehicle characteristics, type of accide nt, day-night occurrence, road section (Mexico-Cuernavaca or Cuernavac a-Mexico) and weather conditions. A physical examination was carried o ut to determine the presence and severity of injuries. Findings. There were 177 injured people, including 12 deaths, with rates of 67.5 inju ries and 4.58 deaths per 10 000 Km driven. Variables associated with a lcohol intake (p < 0.05) included: severity of injuries, non-use of se at belt, vehicle size and occurrence at night. Risk factors for severe injuries were: alcohol intake (adjusted OR 6.1 CI 95% 1.6-24.0); non- use of seat belt (OR 4.9 CI 2.2-10.8), age < 25 years (OR 3.6 CI 1.0-1 2.7), age > 54 years (OR 6.0 CI 1.4-25.0), speed > 90 km/h (OR 2.6 CI 1.1-6.3) and occurrence at night (OR 2.6 CI 1.3-5.3). Conclusions. Alc ohol intake is a major risk factor for severe injuries from highway tr affic accidents. Its association with other risk factors such as non-u se of seat belt and excessive speed suggests the importance of designi ng interventions aimed at reducing alcohol intake among automobile dri vers.