Study on the Pattern of Spinal Injuries Causing Death in Two-wheeler Road Traffic Accidents

Introduction Accidents are common with moving vehicles when they come into contact with either a rider or another vehicle. During the collision, there is an exchange of force between the objects, which results in the deformities. Incidentally, if a person is involved in such an accident, the resultant impact causes injuries in the person. Two-wheelers are no exception for such accidents. In fact, the resultant injuries are much severe than injuries sustained by the occupants of closed cabin vehicles. Aim To study the pattern of spinal injuries in a victim of road traffic accident, who died of a two-wheeler accident. Material and Methods The present study is made on the deaths which occurred after two-wheeler accidents which are subjected to post mortem examination in the mortuary of Gandhi Medical College, Secunderabad, during the period January 2014 to July 2015. Results Cervical spine is the most common area to be involved among spinal column, followed by lumbar and thoracic. Mortality is more highly associated with cervical spine involvement. Among all spinal cord injuries hemorrhage and contusion were more observed. Almost all of the spinal injuries cases were also associated with other injuries and most of them were associated with head injuries.