This study identifies and categorises AIS2+ thoracic and lumbar spine injuries based on 189 occupants who sustained spinal injuries from a subset of 21 034 adult occupants in Volvo cars during 1991-2005, including 95 in-depth cases. Injuries to the lumbar and thoracic spine are found in all accident situations and are mostly found in multiple events; a high proportion of the cases are run-off road scenarios. Several different factors that cause spinal injuries are identified, emphasizing the role of both occupant characteristics as well as occupant posture during load transfer through the spine at impact.
Keywords:
Spine; accident analysis; epidemiology; injuries