Fatal head injuries are declining with helmet use, but there is still a long way to go, say doctors

March is observed as Brain Injury Awareness Month. The Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital, Tamil Nadu’s largest State healthcare facility, sees around five to six cases of brain injury per day now, as against 12 to 14 earlier, says Dean E. Therani Rajan. Road traffic accidents in India Road crashes are the biggest cause of deaths due to unintentional injuries in India, accounting for more than 43 per cent of such fatalities Rural areas bear the brunt of road traffic injury fatalities, with a staggering 67.8 per cent of deaths occurring there, compared to 32.2 per cent in urban areas The mortality ratio of road traffic injuries is approximately 86 per cent for males and 14 per cent for females Over-speeding is the leading cause of these deaths, accounting for 75.2 per cent of fatalities. Other major contributing factors include driving on the wrong side of the road and driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs Source: National Strategy for Prevention of Unintentional Injury report Drastic measures such as not dispensing petrol if the rider and the pillion rider are not wearing helmets and cancelling driving licences are necessary, he insists. “For every death that occurs in a road traffic accident there are at least 50 to 60 people who meet with a accident,” he adds.