Predictors of recovery in cyclists hospitalised for orthopaedic trauma following an on-road crash

BACKGROUND: As cycling-related injury rates are on the rise, there is a need to understand the long term outcomes of these patients in order to quantify the burden of injury and to inform injury prevention strategies. This study aimed to investigate predictors of return to work and functional recovery in a cohort of cyclists hospitalised for orthopaedic trauma from crashes occurring on-road. METHODS: A retrospective analysis of data from the Victorian Orthopaedic Trauma Outcomes Registry (VOTOR) was conducted for patients who were hospitalised for orthopaedic trauma following a cycling crash that occurred on-road between July 2007 and June 2015. RESULTS: There were 1787 injured cyclists admitted at the participating hospitals. Most cyclists were male (79%), resided in major cities (89%) and were in the highest socioeconomic quintile (52%). The majority of crashes were either non-collisions (41%) or collisions with a motor vehicle (35%). A smaller proportion of cyclists who collided with motor vehicles had returned to work and had returned to pre-injury functional levels at 12 months post-injury, when compared to collisions with other impact counterparts and non-collisions. Mixed effects logistic regression models revealed that compensable patients demonstrated lower odds of complete functional recovery and return to work when compared with non-compensable patients. CONCLUSION: Cyclists who collided with motor vehicles had worse outcomes compared to crashes with other impact counterparts and non-collision events. These findings provide support for reducing the potential for interaction between cyclists and motor vehicles.