IJSR International Journal of Scientific Research 2277 - 8179 Indian Society for Health and Advanced Research ijsr-7-3-14668 Original Research Paper A cross sectional study on socio demographic profile, behaviour of helmet usage and an opinion on making helmet compulsory among college students in Tumkur district of Karnataka Ashiq R Mir Dr. Dr Ganesh P Dr. March 2018 7 3 01 02 ABSTRACT

 

Road–traffic accidents are a major cause of premature death and disability all over the world and motorized two wheelers (motorcycles/scooters/ mopeds) account for the majority of such cases, particularly, in the developing countries like India. More than 1.25 million people die each year as a result of road traffic crashes.

Road traffic injuries are the leading cause of death among people aged between 15 and 29 years. The newly adopted 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development has set an ambitious target of halving the global number of deaths and injuries from road traffic crashes by 2020. This study will contribute in spreading information about two wheeler road traffic accidents, formulation of opinion and draw attention on making helmet compulsory. Material and methods: Students from various colleges who gave consent were included and their responses were collected with the help of questionnaire. Results:  54 % of respondents were females. 30 % of respondents were B com students followed by 26% who were Medical students. Majority (64%) of two wheel owners did not own a helmet while 68% of helmet owners did not use helmet while riding a bike in last 3 months. Only 9% of students had experienced crash in last 1 year. Most of the (94%) students were of the opinion of making wearing helmet compulsory. Conclusion: Many lives can be saved if helmet wearing is made compulsory as commonest cause of death following two wheeler accidents is head injury. Wearing of ISI marked helmet with jaw protector can contribute in minimizing damage in accident and awareness efforts are needed to highlight this