Road traffic injury risk from alcohol and cannabis use among emergency department patients in Argentina

Objective. To report the risk from alcohol, cannabis, and their combined use for non-fatal road traffic injuries for drivers, passengers, and pedestrians. Methods. Risk was estimated using the case-crossover method. Participants (N= 306) were injured patients from an emergency department in Mar del...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Revista Panamericana de Salud Pública
Main Authors: Karina Conde, Raquel Inés Peltzer, Paula Victoria Gimenez, Tomás Salomón, Gabriel Suarez, Maristela Monteiro, Cheryl J Cherpitel, Mariana Cremonte
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Spanish
Portuguese
Published: Pan American Health Organization 2022
Subjects:
alcohol drinking
cannabis
accidents
traffic
risk
argentina
Medicine
R
Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine
RC955-962
Public aspects of medicine
RA1-1270
Arctic
Argentina
Uruguay
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.26633/RPSP.2022.116
https://doaj.org/article/baa0955c8d3842bb901dae3a5fad496f
Description
Summary:Objective. To report the risk from alcohol, cannabis, and their combined use for non-fatal road traffic injuries for drivers, passengers, and pedestrians. Methods. Risk was estimated using the case-crossover method. Participants (N= 306) were injured patients from an emergency department in Mar del Plata, Argentina. Results. Alcohol use (OR= 6.78, CI 95% 3.75-12.25) as well as combined alcohol and cannabis use (OR= 7.05, CI 95% 1.16-42.73) significantly increased the risk of a road traffic injuries. Alcohol use increased the risk in both, women (OR= 8.87, CI 95% 2.69-29.21) and men (OR= 6.16, CI 95% 3.10-12.23); in those >30 years old (OR= 6.01, CI 95% 2.09-17.24) and those <30 years old (OR= 7.15, CI 95% 3.49-14.65). This last group also had an increased risk after combined alcohol and cannabis use (OR= 7.05, CI 95% 1.16-42.75). Both drivers (OR= 6.40, CI 95% 3.23-12.69) and passengers (OR= 13.83, CI 95% 2.87-66.42) had an increased risk after alcohol consumption. Conclusions. To our knowledge, these are the first estimates of the risk of having a road traffic injury after alcohol and cannabis consumption in one of the countries of the Southern Cone (Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay). These results highlight the urgent need to implement and enforce comprehensive alcohol control measures. Furthermore, given the global trend towards legalizing cannabis for recreational use, our results could also inform policymakers to enact or amend impaired driving laws.

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