Traffic crashes are a common cause of human suffering, projected to become the fifth leading cause of death in the year 2030 [1]. The current annual worldwide losses amount to about 1.2 million fatalities, 20 million patients surviving with disabilities, and 100 million persons with economic losses from property destruction [2]. Surprisingly, the high burden of traffic crashes remains neglected in medical textbooks, MEDLINE citations, and health research funding agencies [1],[3]. The paradoxical mismatch between relative importance and relative inattention has led to repeated calls for changes to promote more public health protection [4]–[7]. The purpose of this Essay is to highlight (and juxtapose with counterexamples) factors that underpin the relative neglect of traffic crashes as a cause of patient mortality and morbidity.
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