Outcomes one year after a road accident: Results from the ESPARR cohort

Objective

Reducing the rates of death, trauma and sequelae associated with road accidents is the prime goal of road safety authorities, and success requires having data on victims’ outcomes in the long term. The present study examined the outcome of adult road accident victims one year after their accident.

Design

A follow-up study.

Methods

The cohort comprised 886 injured road-accident victims, aged ≥16 years, and living in the Rhône administrative Département, France (taken from the ESPARR Cohort). Data were collected on victim characteristics at the time of crash, and self-reported outcomes one year later. The population of respondents at the one-year questionnaire follow-up was divided into two categories according to injury severity, as mild-to-moderate (M.AIS < 3) or severe (M.AIS 3+). Qualitative variables were compared between these 2 groups using Chi² or Fisher exact tests.

Results

At one year post-accident, 45% of the mild-to-moderate injury group versus only 20% of severely injured subjects reported full recovery of health (p < 0.001). 20% of the cohort, as a whole, reported permanent pain. More than half of the severely injured subjects reported that the accident had had an impact on the everyday life of their family; this was twice as many as in the mild-to-moderate injury group (55% vs. 22%). Most of the severely injured reported impact on leisure, projects and emotional life: 20% reported relational difficulties in the couple, 16% reported impaired sexual life, and the rate of separation was significantly higher than in the mild-to-moderate injury group (5% vs. 1%; p < 0.001). Mean time off work was significantly longer in the severe injury group: 245 ± 158 days vs. 75 ± 104 days (p < 0.001); and 32% of the severe injury group (p < 0.001) who had stopped work had not returned at 1 year, compared to 5% of the mild-to-moderate injury group.

Conclusions

One year after a road accident, the consequences for victims remain significant. In terms of physical impact, pain frequently persists, impairing daily life for many. There is an elevated rate of chronic PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) and a non-negligible impact on affective and occupational life.