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Features for Senior Citizens
Senior Citizens to Die in Car Crashes at Higher Rate
Older people, women in particular, are more
susceptible to injury than younger people
 June 14, 2006 – Senior citizens will die in car
accidents at a higher rate in the years ahead as America’s 75 million
baby boomers age, grow more frail and continue to drive, according to a
new study. Already, seniors age 65 and over are second-most likely to
die in car accidents, after young people aged 15-24, according to a
National Institute on Aging report on America’s elderly, "65+ in the
United States: 2005," released March 9.
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Older people are most likely to think it dangerous and
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June 9, 2006 - If you encounter a driver talking on
a cell phone, it is probably not a senior citizen. Despite knowing that
driving and talking on a cell phone at the same time is dangerous, a
large majority of drivers with cell phones still talk on the cell phone
and drive at the same time. Senior citizens, however, are the most
likely to think it is dangerous and the less likely to do it.
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Study Implying Young With Cell Phones Drive as
Dangerously As Elderly Ignores Facts
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Feb. 4, 2005 - A research report saying when young
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older drivers are far less likely to be in an accident than younger
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Launches Program to Help Older Drivers Drive Safely
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June 24, 2003 - Citing a new
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vulnerable in driving on low-lit roads and busy intersections because
of their diminished vision and slower reaction time, AAA has announced
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Should Mom or Dad Still
Drive?
New
Guide Available Online to Those Concerned About an Aging Driver
July 6, 2004 –
You know older drivers are a problem when insurance companies start
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available a new guide and video online for families worried about an aging
parent's ability to drive safely.
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Features for Senior Citizens |
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“In general, older people are more susceptible to
injury than younger people,” said Richard Kent, assistant professor of
mechanical and aerospace engineering at U.Va.s’ School of Engineering
and Applied Science and co-author of the study.
“As the population ages, the ratio of women to men
also changes, going from 1-to-1 for young people to 100 women for every
35 men by age 85. And, women tend to be more frail than men, making them
more susceptible to injury.”
Kent studied the characteristics of car accidents
and the nature of injuries sustained by older drivers in a research
project titled “On the Fatal Crash Experience of Older Drivers.”
The resulting paper, co-authored with Basem Henary,
research associate, mechanical and aerospace engineering at U.Va. and
Fumio Matsuoka, project manager for vehicle safety, Vehicle Engineering
Division, Toyota Motor Corp., Japan, was recently named the Best
Scientific Paper for 2005 by the Association for the Advancement of
Automotive Medicine in Barrington, Ill., an organization dedicated to
the prevention and control of injuries from motor vehicle accidents.
The researchers’ goal was to identify unique
aspects of older-driver crashes - in particular, the body region
injured, the severity of the crash and the circumstances surrounding
fatal crashes in which they were involved – with an eye to identifying
patterns that could be used in developing new technologies to assist
seniors in driving safely.
The researchers studied police reports on thousands
of vehicle accidents for the years 1992-2002. They examined the
accidents and injuries for three groups of drivers: young adults
(16-33), middle-aged adults (34-64), and seniors (65 and older).
The researchers’ findings included:
● Drivers 65 and over killed in car accidents
were significantly more likely to die of a chest injury (47.3 percent
vs. 24.0 percent in the youngest group)
● Younger drivers were more likely to die of a head injury (22.0
percent vs. 47.1 percent in the oldest group)
● Older drivers were more likely to die at a date after the crash date
(“delayed death”)
● Frailty or pre-existing health conditions played a significant role
in the deaths of the older group, but not in the younger group (50.0
percent of the deaths of the older group vs. 4.3 percent of the younger
drivers’ deaths)
● Despite driving at lower average speeds than younger and middle-aged
drivers, and a greater likelihood of wearing seatbelts, older drivers
were more likely to be injured or die in an accident than younger
drivers.
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"The archetypical elderly driver fatality involves a belted,
sober driver pulling into the path of an oncoming vehicle during
the day and dying several days after a collision of moderate
severity. Pre-existing health issues are often related to the
death. In contrast, the archetype for a 30-45 year-old driver
fatality involves an unbelted, impaired driver losing control of
his/her vehicle at night and dying during an extremely severe,
single-vehicle crash."
"On the Fatal Crash Experience of
Older Drivers," 2005 |
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According to the paper, published in the September
2005 Annual Proceedings
of the Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine: “The
archetypical elderly driver fatality involves a belted, sober driver
pulling into the path of an oncoming vehicle during the day and dying
several days after a collision of moderate severity.
”Pre-existing health issues are often related to
the death. In contrast, the archetype for a 30-45 year-old driver
fatality involves an unbelted, impaired driver losing control of his/her
vehicle at night and dying during an extremely severe, single-vehicle
crash.”
The study recommended that government and industry
officials consider changes that would help reduce seniors’ injuries and
deaths from motor vehicle collisions. Areas deserving of attention
included: roadway design, road signage, vehicle controls and active and
passive safety systems.
Researchers also identified technological
developments that could help older drivers. These included seatbelts
that would limit the force of a crash on a driver’s body,
crash-avoidance systems, technologies that would prevent elderly drivers
from crossing the centerline or pulling into an intersection without
having the right-of-way.
About U.Va. School of Engineering and Applied Science
Founded in 1836, the University of Virginia
School of Engineering and Applied Science combines research and
educational opportunities at the undergraduate and graduate levels.
Within the undergraduate programs, courses in engineering, ethics,
mathematics, the sciences and the humanities are available to build a
strong foundation for careers in engineering and other professions. Its
abundant research opportunities complement the curriculum and educate
young men and women to become thoughtful leaders in technology and
society.
At the graduate level, the Engineering School
collaborates with the University's highly ranked medical and business
schools on interdisciplinary research projects and entrepreneurial
initiatives. With a distinguished faculty and a student body of 2,000
undergraduates and 650 graduate students, the Engineering School offers
an array of engineering disciplines, including cutting-edge research
programs in computer and information science and engineering,
bioengineering, and nanotechnology. For more information, visit
http://www.seas.virginia.edu.
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