Vehicle Research Center, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, Ruckersville, Virginia.
Traffic Inj Prev. 2022;23(1):11-16. doi: 10.1080/15389588.2021.2004312. Epub 2021 Dec 7.
Previous research has found elevated injury risk for females relative to males in passenger vehicle crashes but has not accounted for ways the crashes themselves differ between these populations. Vehicle curb weight, ride height, safety rating, airbag deployment, and crash configuration all influence injury outcome and often are not well-represented by delta-V alone. This study evaluated the effect of occupant sex on injury risk in front and side crashes while limiting or controlling for non-physiological crash differences. Additionally, the effects of crashworthiness improvements are compared for females and males.
NASS-CDS cases from 1998-2015 calendar years involving a belted driver in a front crash or a struck-side driver or right front passenger in a side crash were analyzed. Case vehicle model years were 1989-2016. Logistic regression was used to estimate the risk of MAIS ≥ 2 and MAIS ≥ 3 injury outcomes for females relative to males as well as the change in risk due to improved crashworthiness. Sex-based differences in occupant age, mass, and stature; crash test rating; delta-V; crash configuration; and vehicle-to-vehicle compatibility were considered either through case selection or the inclusion of additional regression covariates.
Before controlling for crash and vehicle differences, female drivers in front crashes had higher estimated overall and body-region-specific risks of MAIS ≥ 2 and MAIS ≥ 3 injury, as consistent with previous findings. After accounting for such differences, all ratios of injury odds for females relative to males were reduced. Females remained at higher risk of MAIS ≥ 2 injury (OR, 2.23; 95% CI, 1.42-3.51), especially extremity injury, but had similar odds for MAIS ≥ 3 non-extremity injury (OR, 0.98; 95% CI, 0.56-1.7). While controlling for crash differences in side impacts, none of the estimated injury risk differences by sex were significant at the ≤ 0.05 level. Estimated benefits of improved crashworthiness were similar or greater for females than for males for most injury outcomes.
Female-specific crashworthiness improvements may be required to provide additional protection against AIS 2 extremity injury. Much of the remaining discrepancy in sex-based injury risk can be attributed differences between vehicles and crashes, not to physiological differences. Addressing these differences will require other types of countermeasures.
先前的研究发现，在乘用车碰撞中，女性的受伤风险高于男性，但并未考虑到这些人群之间的碰撞本身存在差异。车辆路缘重量、行驶高度、安全等级、安全气囊展开以及碰撞配置都会影响受伤结果，而这些因素仅凭 delta-V 并不能很好地表示。本研究评估了在限制或控制非生理碰撞差异的情况下，乘员性别对正面和侧面碰撞中受伤风险的影响。此外，还比较了女性和男性在耐撞性改进方面的效果。
分析了 1998-2015 历年 NASS-CDS 案例，涉及正面碰撞中系安全带的驾驶员或侧面碰撞中被撞侧驾驶员或右前乘客。案例车辆模型年份为 1989-2016 年。使用逻辑回归估计女性相对于男性 MAIS≥2 和 MAIS≥3 伤害结果的风险，以及由于耐撞性改进而导致的风险变化。通过案例选择或包含其他回归协变量，考虑了乘员年龄、体重和身高、碰撞测试等级、delta-V、碰撞配置以及车对车兼容性等性别差异。
在不考虑碰撞和车辆差异的情况下，与之前的发现一致，正面碰撞中的女性驾驶员受伤的总体和身体特定区域 MAIS≥2 和 MAIS≥3 伤害的风险估计更高。在考虑到这些差异后，女性相对于男性的所有伤害几率比均降低。女性仍然面临更高的 MAIS≥2 伤害风险（OR，2.23；95%CI，1.42-3.51），尤其是四肢受伤，但非四肢 MAIS≥3 受伤的几率相似（OR，0.98；95%CI，0.56-1.7）。在控制侧面碰撞中的碰撞差异时，按性别估计的任何受伤风险差异在 0.05 水平上均不显著。对于大多数伤害结果，女性的耐撞性改进的预期收益与男性相似或更大。
可能需要针对女性特定的耐撞性改进，以提供针对 AIS 2 四肢伤害的额外保护。性别相关伤害风险的大部分剩余差异可归因于车辆和碰撞之间的差异，而不是生理差异。解决这些差异将需要其他类型的对策。
