Frequency and risk of cervical spine distortion injuries in passenger car accidents: significance of human factors data

wbldb

Temming, J.¹; Zobel, R.¹

Frequency and risk of cervical spine distortion injuries in passenger car accidents: significance of human factors data

Proceedings of the 1998 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact

Affiliations

¹Volkswagen AG, Corporate Research, D - 38436 Wolfsburg
Abstract

The parameters: gender, age, height and weight of occupants in passenger cars in relation to cervical spine distortion injuries in traffic accidents have been analyzed on the basis of the VW-Accident-Database.

Occupant gender has proved to be the most important of the human factors parameters under investigation. The risk of suffering neck distortion injuries is about twice as high for women than for men in the database examined.

Regarding the age of occupants, highest risk rates were found in age groups from 18 to 47 years. Risk rates were lower in age groups below and above this range. Occupant height obviously had less effect on the risk of neck distortion injuries. However, apart from side impacts, injury risk slightly increased with increasing height. Occupant weight turned out to be the least important of the parameters investigated.

Effects of the human factors data on cervical spine distortion injuries are modified by different types of passenger cars collisions. With regard to the number of injuries to belted occupants, front impacts rank first, followed by multiple impacts, rear impacts and side impacts. With regard to injury risk, rear impacts rank first, followed by multiple impacts, front impacts and side impacts.

It has been shown that the most frequent occurrences of any parameter may be found in a value range different than the maximum risk of being injured. Therefore, frequency figures regarding occurrences must not be assumed to be equivalent to risk rates.

Cited Works (12)

Year	Entry
1988	Lövsund P, Nygren A, Salen B, Tingvall C. Neck injuries in rear end collisions among front and rear seat occupants. In: Proceedings of the 1988 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact. September 14-16, 1988; Bergisch-Gladbach, West Germany.319-325.
1969	Kihlberg JK. Flexion-torsion neck injury in rear impacts. In: 13th Annual Proceedings, Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine (AAAM). October 16, 1969; Minneapolis, MN.1-16.
1994	Otte D. The Accident Research Unit Hannover as example for importance and benefit of existing in depth investigations. In: Proceedings of the SAE International Congress & Exposition. February 28–March 3, 1994; Detroit, MI. Warrendale, PA: Society of Automotive Engineers. SAE 940712.
1982	Ommaya AK, Backaitis S, Fan W, Partyka S, Langwieder K. Automotive neck injuries. In: Proceedings of the 9th International Technical Conference on Experimental Safety Vehicles (ESV). November 1-4, 1982; Kyoto, Japan.274-278.
1995	Spitzer O Walter, Skovron ML, Salmi LR, Cassidy JD, Duranceau J, Suissa S, Zeiss E. Scientific monograph of the Quebec task force on whiplash-associated disorders: redefining "whiplash" and its management. Spine. 1995;20(suppl 8):2S-73S.
1998	Lundell B, Jakobsson L, Alfredsson B, Jernström C, Isaksson-Hellman I. Guidelines for and the design of a car seat concept for improved protection against neck injuries in rear end car impacts. In: Proceedings of the SAE International Congress & Exposition. February 23-26, 1998; Detroit, MI. Warrendale, PA: Society of Automotive Engineers. SAE 980301.
1990	The Abbreviated Injury Scale-1990 Revision. Des Plaines, IL: Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine (AAAM); 1990.
1997	Otte D, Pohlemann T, Blauth M. Significance of soft tissue neck injuries AIS 1 in the accident scene and deformation characteristics of cars with delta-V up to 10 km/h. In: Proceedings of the 1997 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact. September 24-26, 1997; Hannover, Germany.265-283.
1972	States JD, Balcerak JC, Williams JS, Morris AT, Babcock W, Polvino R, Riger P, Dawley RE. Injury frequency and head restraint effectiveness in rear-end impact accidents. In: Proceedings of the 16th Stapp Car Crash Conference. November 8-10, 1972; Detroit, MI. Warrendale, PA: Society of Automotive Engineers:228-257. SAE 720967.
1996	Krafft M, Thomas A, Nygren A, Lie A, Tingvall C. Whiplash associated disorder: factors influencing the incidence in rear-end collisions. In: Proceedings of the 15th International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV). May 13-16, 1996; Melbourne, Australia.1426-1432.
1972	O'Neill B, Haddon W Jr, Kelley AB, Sorenson WW. Automobile head restraints: frequency of neck injury claims in relation to the presence of head restraints. Am J Public Health. March 1972;62(3):399-406.
1973	Foust DR, Chaffin DB, Snyder RG, Baum JK. Cervical range of motion and dynamic response and strength of cervical muscles. In: Proceedings of the 17th Stapp Car Crash Conference. November 17-19, 1973; Coronado, CA. Warrendale, PA: Society of Automotive Engineers:285-308. SAE 730975.

Cited By (53)

Year	Entry
2003	Digges K, Bahouth G. Frequency of injuries in multiple impact crashes. In: 47th Annual Proceedings, Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine (AAAM). September 22-24, 2003; Lisbon, Portugal.417-423.
2001	Cappon H, Philippens M, Wismans J. A new test method for the assessment of neck injuries in rear-end collisions. In: Proceedings of the 17th International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV). June 4-7, 2001; Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
2003	Schmitt K-U, Muser M, Heggendorn M, Niederer P, Walz F. Seat component to prevent whiplash injury. In: Proceedings of the 18th International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV). May 19-22, 2003; Nagoya, Japan.
2005	Eis V, Sferco R, Fay P. A detailed analysis of the characteristics of European rear impacts. In: Proceedings of the 19th International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV). June 6-9, 2005; Washington, DC.
2011	Linder A, Svensson M, Carlsson A, Lemmen P, Chang F, Schmitt K-U, Kullgren A. EVARID: anthropometric and biomechanical specification of a finite element dummy model of an average female for rear impact testing. In: Proceedings of the 22nd International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV). June 13-16, 2011; Washington, DC.
2013	Lemmen P, Gupta A, Lakshminarayana A, Carlsson A, Svensson M, Schmitt K-U, Levallois I, Linder A, Tomasch E. Seat optimisation considering reduction of neck injuries for female and male occupants: applications of the EvaRID model and a loading device representing a 50th percentile female. In: Proceedings of the 23rd International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV). May 27-30, 2013; Seoul, South Korea.
2015	Brolin K, Östh J, Svensson M, Sato F, Ono K, Linder A, Kullgren A. Aiming for an average female virtual human body model for seat performance assessment in rear-end impacts. In: Proceedings of the 24th International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV). June 8-11, 2015; Gothenburg, Sweden.
2002	Siegmund GP, Heinrichs BE, Chimich DD, DeMarco AL, Brault JR. The effect of collision pulse properties on six proposed whiplash injury criteria. In: Proceedings of the 30th International Workshop on Human Subjects for Biomechanical Research. November 2002; Ponte Vedra Beach, FL.47-60.
1999	Eichberger A, Körner W, Steffan H. The neck injury criterion (NIC) in dummy tests: a mathematical simulation study. In: Proceedings of the 1999 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact. September 23-24, 1999; Sitges, Spain.535-537.
1999	Hell W, Langwieder K, Walz F, Muser M, Kramer M, Hartwig E. Consequences for seat design due to rear end accident analysis, sled tests and possible test criteria for reducing cervical spine injuries after rear-end collision. In: Proceedings of the 1999 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact. September 23-24, 1999; Sitges, Spain.243-259.
1999	Jakobsson L, Norin H. Suggestions for evaluation criteria of neck injury protection in rear end car impacts. In: Proceedings of the 1999 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact. September 23-24, 1999; Sitges, Spain.271-282.
1999	Panjabi MM, Wang J-L, Delson N. Neck injury criterion based on intervertebral motions and its evaluation using an instrumented neck dummy. In: Proceedings of the 1999 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact. September 23-24, 1999; Sitges, Spain.179-190.
2000	Jakobsson L, Norin H, Isaksson-Hellman I. Parameters influencing the risk of AIS1 neck injuries in frontal and side impacts. In: Proceedings of the 2000 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact. September 20-22, 2000; Montpellier, France.235-245.
2000	Langwieder K, Hell W, Schick S, Muser M, Walz F, Zellmer H. Evolution of a dynamic seat test standard proposal for a better protection after rear-end impact. In: Proceedings of the 2000 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact. September 20-22, 2000; Montpellier, France.393-409.
2001	Fay PA, Sferco R, Frampton R. Multiple impact crashes consequences for occupant protection measures. In: Proceedings of the 2001 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact. October 10-12, 2001; Isle of Man, UK.
2002	Heitplatz F, Sferco R, Fay PA, Reim J, de Vogel D. Development of a generic low speed rear impact pulse for assessing soft tissue neck injury risk. In: Proceedings of the 2002 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact. September 18-20, 2002; Munich, Germany.
2002	Jakobsson L, Norin H, Bunketorp O. In-depth study of whiplash associated disorders in frontal impacts: influencing factors and consequences. In: Proceedings of the 2002 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact. September 18-20, 2002; Munich, Germany.
2002	Schmitt K-U, Muser M, Vetter D, Walz F. Biomechanical assessment of soft tissue neck injuries in cases with long sick leave times. In: Proceedings of the 2002 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact. September 18-20, 2002; Munich, Germany.
2007	Stemper BD, Yoganandan N, Gennarelli TA, Pintar FA. Toward a lower neck rear impact injury criterion: correlation of lower neck loads with spinal kinematics. In: Proceedings of the 2007 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact. September 19-21, 2007; Maastricht, The Netherlands.249-260.
2008	Walsh J, Simms C, FitzPatrick D, Tiernan J. Spinal loading on wheelchair occupants with postural deformities in a rear impact during surface transport. In: Proceedings of the 2008 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact. September 17-19, 2008; Bern, Switzerland.339-350.
2009	Stemper BD, Storvik SG, Yoganandan N, Pintar FA. Verification of lower neck shear force as a rear impact injury criterion. In: Proceedings of the 2009 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact. September 9-11, 2009; York, UK.369-380.
2010	Carlsson A, Siegmund GP, Linder A, Svensson M. Motion of the head and neck of female and male volunteers in rear impact car-to-car tests at 4 and 8 km/h. In: Proceedings of the 2010 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact. September 15-17, 2010; Hannover, Germany.29-39.
2010	Kullgren A, Krafft M. Gender analysis on whiplash seat effectiveness: results rrom real-world crashes. In: Proceedings of the 2010 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact. September 15-17, 2010; Hannover, Germany.17-28.
2011	Jonsson B, Krafft M, Kullgren A. Development of Whiplash Associated Disorders for adult and child occupants in cars launched since the 1980s in different impact directions. In: Proceedings of the 2011 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Injury. September 14-16, 2011; Krakow, Poland.62-72.
2012	Linder A, Olsén S, Eriksson J, Svensson MY, Carlsson A. Influence of gender, height, weight, age, seated position and collision site related to neck pain symptoms in rear end impacts. In: Proceedings of the 2012 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Injury. September 12-14, 2012; Dublin, Ireland.236-248.
2012	Carlsson A, Chang F, Lemmen P, Kullgren A, Schmitt K, Linder A, Svensson MY. EvaRID: a 50th percentile female rear impact finite element dummy model. In: Proceedings of the 2012 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Injury. September 12-14, 2012; Dublin, Ireland.249-262.
2013	Kullgren A, Stigson H, Krafft M. Development of whiplash associated disorders for male and female car occupants in cars launched since the 80s in different impact directions. In: Proceedings of the 2013 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Injury. September 11-13, 2013; Gothenburg, Sweden.51-61.
2014	Gutsche AJ, Tomasch E, Darok M, Sinz W, Ciglaric I, Ravnik D, Steffan H. Comparison of the cervical spine bony kinematics for female PMHS with the virtual EvaRID dummy under whiplash loading. In: Proceedings of the 2014 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Injury. September 10-12, 2014; Berlin, Germany.250-267.
2017	Östh J, Mendoza‐Vazquez M, Linder A, Svensson MY, Brolin K. The VIVA OpenHBM finite element 50th percentile female occupant model: whole body model development and kinematic validation. In: Proceedings of the 2017 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Injury. September 13-15, 2017; Antwerp, Belgium.443-466.
2018	Siegmund GP. Soft tissue neck injuries and other important things. In: Proceedings of the 2018 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Injury. September 12-14, 2018; Athens, Greece.i-xii.
1999	Zuby DS, Vann DT, Lund AK, Morris CR. Crash test evaluation of whiplash injury risk. In: Proceedings of the 43rd Stapp Car Crash Conference. October 25-27, 1999; San Diego, CA. Warrendale, PA: Society of Automotive Engineers:267-278. SAE 99SC17.
2002	Philippens M, Cappon H, Van Ratingen M, Wismans J, Svensson M, Sirey F, Ono K, Nishimoto N, Matsuoka F. Comparison of the rear impact biofidelity of BioRID II and RID2. Stapp Car Crash J. 2002;46:461-476. SAE 2002-22-0023.
2003	Bortenschlager K, Kramberger D, Barnsteiner K, Hartlieb M, Ferdinand L, Leyer H, Muser M, Schmitt K-U. Comparison tests of BioRID II and RID 2 with regard to repeatability, reproducibility and sensitivity for assessment of car seat protection potential in rear-end impacts. Stapp Car Crash J. 2003;47:473-488. SAE 2003-22-0021.
2004	Siegmund GP, Sanderson DJ, Inglis JT. Gradation of neck muscle responses and head/neck kinematics to acceleration and speed change in rear-end collisions. Stapp Car Crash J. 2004;48:419-430. SAE 2004-22-0018.
2000	Svensson MY, Boström O, Davidsson J, Hansson H-A, Håland Y, Lövsund P, Suneson A, Säljö A. Neck injuries in car collisions: a review covering a possible injury mechanism and the development of a new rear-impact dummy. Accid Anal Prev. March 2000;32(2):167-175.
2000	Eichberger A, Darok M, Steffan H, Leinzinger PE, Boström O, Svensson MY. Pressure measurements in the spinal canal of post-mortem human subjects during rear-end impact and correlation of results to the neck injury criterion. Accid Anal Prev. March 2000;32(2):251-260.
2000	Chapline JF, Ferguson SA, Lillis RP, Lund AK, Williams AF. Neck pain and head restraint position relative to the driver’s head in rear-end collisions. Accid Anal Prev. March 2000;32(2):287-297.
2000	Jakobsson L, Lundell B, Norin H, Isaksson-Hellman I. WHIPS: Volvo’s whiplash protection study. Accid Anal Prev. March 2000;32(2):307-319.
2002	Schmitt K-U, Muser MH, Walz FH, Niederer PF. Fluid-structure interaction in the biomechanics of soft tissue neck injuries: a finite element study to analyze blood vessel pressure effects in the venous plexus. Traffic Inj Prev. 2002;3(1):65-73.
2002	Hell W, Schick S, Langwieder K, Zellmer H. Biomechanics of cervical spine injuries in rear end car impacts: influence of car seats and possible evaluation criteria. Traffic Inj Prev. 2002;3(2):127-140.
2002	Langwieder K, Hell W. Proposal of an international harmonized dynamic test standard for seats/head restraints. Traffic Inj Prev. 2002;3(2):150-158.
2002	Jakobsson L, Norin H. Suggestions for evaluation criteria of neck injury protection in rear-end car impacts. Traffic Inj Prev. 2002;3(3):216-223.
2004	Jakobsson L, Norin H, Svensson MY. Parameters influencing AIS 1 neck injury outcome in frontal impacts. Traffic Inj Prev. 2004;5(2):156-163.
2008	Farmer CM, Zuby DS, Wells JK, Hellinga LA. Relationship of dynamic seat ratings to real-world neck injury rates. Traffic Inj Prev. December 2008;9(6):561-567.
2010	Viano DC, Parenteau CS. Severe injury to near- and far-seated occupants in side impacts by crash severity and belt use. Traffic Inj Prev. 2010;11(1):69-78.
2011	Carlsson A, Linder A, Davidsson J, Hell W, Schick S, Svensson M. Dynamic kinematic responses of female volunteers in rear impacts and comparison to previous male volunteer tests. Traffic Inj Prev. 2011;12(4):347-357.
2012	Carlsson A. Addressing Female Whiplash Injury Protection: A Step Towards 50th Percentile Female Rear Impact Occupant Models [PhD thesis]. Gothenburg, Sweden: Chalmers University of Technology; 2012.
2004	Stemper BD. Whiplash Affects Cervical Spine Biomechanics [PhD thesis]. Wilwaukee, WI: Marquette University; May 2004.
2009	DeRosia JJ. Role of Gender and Size in Biomechanics of Rear Impact Wilwaukee, WI: Marquette University; May 2009.
2004	Mordaka JK. Finite Element Analysis of Whiplash Injury for Women [PhD thesis]. Nottingham, UK: Nottingham Trent University; September 2004.
2009	Walsh JC. The Influence of Scoliosis and Wheechair Customisations in Rear Impact [PhD thesis]. Dublin, Ireland: Trinity College Dublin; 2009.
2020	Shen D. Investigation of Whiplash Associated Disorders Using Finite Element Neck Models With Active Musculature in Frontal, Rear and Lateral Impact [Master's thesis]. University of Waterloo; 2020.
2017	Davis ML. Development and Full Body Validation of a 5th Percentile Female Finite Element Model [PhD thesis]. Winston-Salem, NC: Wake Forest University; January 2017.