Characteristics and Injury Patterns in Electric-Scooter Related Accidents—A Prospective Two-Center Report from Germany

Abstract

Since the introduction of rental E-scooters in Germany in mid-June 2019, the safety of this new means of transport has been the subject of extensive public debate. However, valid data on injuries and usage habits are not yet available. This retrospective two-center study included a total of 76 patients who presented to the emergency department following E-scooter-related accidents. The mean age was 34.3 ± 12.4 years and 69.7% of the patients were male. About half of the patients were admitted by ambulance (42.1%). Fractures were found in 48.6% of patients, and 27.6% required surgical treatment due to a fracture. The upper extremities were the most commonly affected body region, followed by injuries to the lower extremity and to the head and face. Only one patient had worn a helmet. In-hospital treatment was necessary for 26.3% of the cases. Patients presented to the emergency department mainly during the weekend and on-call times. This is the first report on E-scooter-related injuries in Germany. Accidents with E-scooters can cause serious injuries and, therefore, represent a further burden to emergency departments. The use of E-scooters appears to be mostly recreational, and the rate of use of protective gear is low.

Electric Scooter-Related Injuries: A New Epidemic in Orthopedics

“…Most emergency department presentations were observed in the evening hours (61%). These results are in line with those published in recent literature in which 60 to 65% of accidents were produced during the late evening hours [ 10 , 22 ]. Trivedi et al reported injuries produced from 3 pm to 11 pm in some 56% of the cases [ 5 ].…”

“…That fact along with the scarce data published on e-scooter injuries supports them being treated as high-energy mechanisms that can result in severe injuries. These results are in line with those published by Ishmael et al and Störmann et al in which 27.6% of injuries were treated surgically [ 3 , 10 ]. It is important that riders understand the hazards associated with moving around on a two-wheeled vehicle that may reach 30 km/h.…”

Evaluation of Electric Scooter Head and Neck Injuries in Paris, 2017-2019

“…Although trauma caused by e-scooters is poorly described in the literature, recently there has been an increased number of scientific publications on e-scooter–related injuries. 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 Most published articles were retrospective observational studies from the United States.…”

Understanding E-Scooter Incidents Patterns in Street Network Perspective: A Case Study of Travis County, Texas

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“…In contrast to the amount of shared micro-mobility research on travel behaviors, there is scarce literature on E-scooter safety due to the lack of data. Although researchers have used survey-based methods [13] and data mining techniques [2] to identify scooter-related injuries and crashes, it is difficult for planners to contextualize the safety issues without sufficient empirical evidence.…”