by Alaa Shaban, M.D. PGY 2

 

Summertime is here! It’s time to dust off the bikes, wax those skateboard wheels, and pull out the roller blades. That also means bringing out the old helmet, right?

Sadly – probably not.

Nationwide, only about 15% of kids wear helmets while biking.

The Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute reports that only 11% of children involved in bike accidents were wearing helmets. Annually, head injuries cause more than three-fourths of the nearly 750 deaths from bicycle crashes. Most of those victims weren’t wearing a helmet. Researchers have shown helmets can prevent 85% of those deaths, as well as other serious injuries including brain damage.

Minor head injuries or concussions are also extremely common accounting for nearly 230,000 emergency room (ER) visits from 2007 through 2011.

In June 2016 Pediatrics, the Seattle Sports Concussion Research Collaborative found that most concussions in children younger than 18 years are diagnosed by personal trainers and in primary care clinics. This suggests that concussion rates based upon ER visits grossly underestimate the actual rate. From their review of three national databases, the researchers estimate that between 1.1 and 1.9 million sports- and recreation- related concussions occur each year.

All cyclists can expect to crash in 4500 miles of riding no matter how seasoned or careful they are. The Children’s Safety Network reported that young cyclists are more likely than adults to die from bicycle-related accidents, usually from collisions with motor vehicles.

https://www.childrenssafetynetwork.org/injury-topics/bike-safety

Since 1994, California has had a state law requiring helmets for cyclists younger than 18 years. A total of 21 states and the District of Columbia have helmet laws. However, wearing helmets has become “un-cool” for youngsters. In addition, helmet laws are generally poorly enforced, especially in neighborhoods where police resources are spread thin.

During my short time as a pediatric resident at Harbor-UCLA, I have too frequently seen children coming into our ER with traumatic brain injuries, ranging from minor concussions to brain death. Many of those injuries could have been avoided – or at least dramatically reduced – by simply wearing a helmet.

For one local kid, Sean Faust, the consequences of not wearing a helmet are far too real.

Six years ago, at the age of 15 years, with the sense of adolescent invincibility running through his veins, Faust went skateboarding down a hill in Manhattan Beach. He fell backwards onto his head and suffered major head trauma. He was transported to Harbor-UCLA in critical condition and required emergent brain surgery. He was in the pediatric intensive care unit and placed into a medically induced coma for more than a week. His parents had no idea how he would be when he woke up or if he would even wake up.

“The hardest part is knowing that I’m the only one who doesn’t remember it”; said Faust, “It’s painful knowing that all my closest friends and family witnessed the effects of the trauma more than me.”

Fortunately, Faust was one of the lucky ones. He made a full recovery and recently graduated from college with a major in Communications. He doesn’t want others to go through the horrible ordeal that he and his family did. Using his interest in communications and health, he’s working to raise awareness about wearing helmets. To do this, he created a PSA Helmet Safety Video about his experience.

We don’t know exactly why helmets aren’t used more often. Why isn’t it a habit, just like buckling up a seat belt? The most common reasons cited by kids are that they don’t like how helmets fit or how they look. Lots or other reasons are also tossed around. Is it that parents can’t afford to buy them? Is it that parents don’t make it a priority? Is it that youth wear helmets until their peers convince them that it’s not cool? Or maybe kids see the helmet as a sign of poor skills? Whatever the reason, the benefits of wearing something so simple, relatively inexpensive, and harmless far outweigh any possible excuse to not don a helmet.

My goal as a resident physician, pediatrician, child and community advocate is to promote making helmets the routine. I want them to be something that everyone (kids, teens and adults) is excited to wear – that somehow it becomes “un-cool” to NOT wear a helmet. I also hope to make helmets more accessible to families with limited incomes. I want them to see helmets as essential protective gear, not a luxury accessory for a bike or skateboard.

My interest in this advocacy project led me to the local Boys and Girls Club of LA Harbor in Wilmington, CA. I had the opportunity to speak to about 50 boys and girls about the importance of wearing a helmet. I had help and support of the Harbor-UCLA Injury Prevention nurses, Antoinette Salas and Kristen Kraus, as well as LAPD motorcycle police officer Andrew Rowe.

The kids were very receptive to the information. This taught me the value of having a direct, honest conversation with kids – a great lesson for me when I’m in the clinic or doing outreach in the community.

Moral of the story: Always wear a helmet, no matter what, where, or when you ride.

Because wearing helmets protects your brain, and that’s COOL!