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CC BY-NC 4.0 · Arch Plast Surg 2015; 42(04): 407-410
DOI: 10.5999/aps.2015.42.4.407
Review Article

Relationship between Locations of Facial Injury and the Use of Bicycle Helmets: A Systematic Review

Kun Hwang
Department of Plastic Surgery, Inha University School of Medicine, Incheon, Korea
,
Yun Moon Jeon
Inha University School of Medicine, Incheon, Korea
,
Yeong Seung Ko
Inha University School of Medicine, Incheon, Korea
,
Yeon Soo Kim
Department of Plastic Surgery, Inha University School of Medicine, Incheon, Korea
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The aim of this study is to review the protective effect of a bicycle helmet on each facial location systematically. PubMed was searched for articles published before December 12, 2014. The data were summarized, and the odds ratio (OR) between the locations of facial injury was calculated. A statistical analysis was performed with Review Manager (The Nordic Cochrane Centre). Bicycle helmets protect the upper and middle face from serious facial injury but do not protect the lower face. Non-wearers had significantly increased risks of upper facial injury (OR, 2.07; P<0.001) and of middle facial injury (OR, 1.97; P<0.001) as compared to helmet users. In the case of lower facial injury, however, only a slightly increased risk (OR, 1.42; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.67-3.00, P=0.36) was observed. The abovementioned results can be attributed to the fact that a helmet covers the head and forehead but cannot cover the lower face. However, helmets having a chin cap might decrease the risk of lower facial injury.

Keywords

Bicycling - Head protective devices - Facial injury


Publication History

Received: 16 February 2015

Accepted: 03 April 2015

Article published online:
05 May 2022

© 2015. The Korean Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License, permitting unrestricted noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/)

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