Initial assessment of the effect of the compulsory use of seat belts on car occupants' injuries, and the trauma department work-load.

The wearing of seat belts was made compulsory for all front seat car occupants at the beginning of February 1983. A survey carried out at the Royal Berkshire Hospital, Reading, a District General Hospital serving the West Berkshire area, has allowed assessment of the effect of legislation on the pattern of injuries sustained by car occupants involved in road traffic accidents, and of the effect it has had on the work-load of the Casualty Department and trauma wards. These preliminary findings show that there has been a change in the pattern of injuries sustained by car occupants in road traffic accidents following the introduction of compulsory seat belt use, but there has not been a significant drop in the work-load of the Trauma Department.