Injury Observations in High-exposure, Low-severity Frontal Car Crashes - a GIDAS Investigation
This study analyzed real-world crash data from the German In-Depth Accident Study (GIDAS) to examine injury patterns in low-severity frontal crashes, EES(Energy Equivalent Speed; equivalent speed at which a particular vehicle would need to contact any fixed rigid object in order to dissipate the deformation energy corresponding to the observed vehicle residual crush) below 35 km/h, involving belted front-row occupants 13-year-old and older. The dataset included 6,284 crash-exposed occupants, with detailed assessments of crash severity, demographic factors (age, sex, body size), vehicle characteristics, and seatbelt pretensioner activation. Injury risk and frequency were calculated across different crash severities, age groups, and vehicle types. The key findings include
 |
Low-severity crashes (EES 0-34 km/h), are the most common, involving 90% of all occupants. Among those in low-severity crashes, 167 females had a total of 194 AIS2+ injuries, while 151 males had 165 AIS2+ injuries. The head was the most frequently injured area, with 36.6% of AIS2+ injuries in females and 37.6% in males. The average age of all occupants in low-severity crashes is 44.1 years, while those with AIS2+ injuries have an average age of 49.2 years.
|
 |
In mid-severity crashes (EES 35-59 km/h), the risk of injury rises to 27.4% for AIS2+ injuries and 8.6% for AIS3+ injuries. Among these crashes, 77 females sustained a total of 134 AIS2+ injuries, while 85 males had 145 AIS2+ injuries. The thorax (chest) was the most affected area for both genders. The average age of all occupants in mid-severity crashes is 45.8 years, while those with AIS2+ injuries have an average age of 51 years.
|
 |
In high-severity crashes (EES ≥ 60 km/h), these risks go up even more, reaching 52.2% and 32.3%, respectively. There were only 13 females with 25 AIS2+ injured body regions and 20 males with 54 AIS2+ injured body regions. For females the most injured body regions were the head, thorax, and lower extremities. For males the most injured body regions were the lower extremities, thorax, and head. In high-severity crashes, the average age is lower, 40.6 years for all occupants and 40.2 years for those with AIS2+ injuries.
|
 |
Most of the injured occupants were middle-aged (36-65 years old), including 47.9% of females and 40.4% of males. Additionally, the majority fell into the middle-size body category, with at least 83.6% of females and 74.0% of males in this group.
|
 |
More than half of the occupants who sustained an AIS2+ injury travelled in cars registered between 2000 and 2006. Just over 30% travelled in cars from 2007 to 2013, while around 15% were in newer cars. Regardless of the car’s registration year, females had a higher risk of injury than males.
|
Conclusion:
The overall risk of injury in low-severity frontal crashes involving belted occupants was low. However, since these crashes are very common, many injuries still occur in lower-severity crashes. Most of the injuries were at AIS2 severity level. Injured occupants were mostly in the middle-size body group, reflecting the general distribution of all belted occupants in low-severity crashes. Regarding injury patterns, middle-aged occupants were most often injured in the head, thorax, and upper extremities. Younger occupants were more likely to have head injuries, while older occupants more frequently sustained injuries to the thorax.
This paper was presented at the IRCOBI conference 2024 and the paper can be accessed in this link https://www.ircobi.org/wordpress/downloads/irc24/pdf-files/24126.pdf