Page 19 - Delaware Medical Journal - July 2016
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SCIENTIFIC ARTICLE
FIGURE 6
Analysis of accidents by age distribution within Delaware. The top panel shows a map indicating the percentage of children in the population by census tract in Delaware. The bottom panel shows ANOVA comparison of normalized accident frequency across quintiles of population. Stars are placed atop bars if that quintile is significantly different from the others indicated. Where only a single difference
is noted, the star may be placed between the connector. Double stars (**) indicate a significant difference as per the BH correction, whereas single stars (*) indicate a difference at the P < 0.05 level. The normalized frequency of accidents is larger (P < 0.05) for the uppermost quintile of population. There is no difference in accident frequency among the other quintiles.
increased intensity of roadway lighting.
Wilmington, like many cities, has a large share of businesses whose employees live outside the city. Unlike New York City, however, public transportation is limited. This necessitates a diurnal migration of drivers during rush hours, many of whom must pass through New York City recently obtained government funds to examine school-aged pedestrian injury after implementation of the Safe pedestrian signals, exclusive pedestrian crossing times, speed bumps, speed boards, and visible crosswalks. Their examination included the migration of students during rush hour and found a 33 percent reduction in pedestrian (aged 5-20 years) injury after implementation of their interventions.3 As a result, it appears absolutely certain
that multiple changes can be made to reduce pediatric pedestrian injury. In some areas of the country, these alterations are expensive, especially in areas where poor urban planning has played a role. While successful implementation has shown an overall reduction in pedestrian morbidity and mortality, CDC data continue to indicate that motor-vehicle-induced injury is the most common cause
of injury in the pediatric population. Among the many changes
remains important. Childhood development and the understanding of safe areas to cross roads, detecting road dangers, and processing improve as a child’s age increases. However, some studies have demonstrated parental overestimation and poor awareness of their 7
CONCLUSION
Modern geospatial analysis and trauma registry data can be used to better understand geographic location of motor vehicle injuries and how they relate to the socio-demographic factors of a region. This kind of analysis can facilitate future urban planning initiatives13 and the development of appropriately focused prevention strategies. Findings from our study suggest that children in urban and poor areas in the state of Delaware are disproportionately affected by the development of focused prevention strategies.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The authors thank Steve Selverian, BS, for his role with data collection for this project.
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