Assessing the Emergent Public Health Concern of All-Terrain Vehicle Injuries in Rural and Agricultural Environments: Initial Review of Available National Datasets in the United States

BACKGROUND: Injuries related to the operation of off-road vehicles (ORVs), including all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), continue to be a significant public health concern, especially in rural and agricultural environments. In the United States alone, ATVs have played a role in thousands of fatalities and millions of injuries in the recent decades. However, no known centralized federal surveillance system consistently captures these data. Traditional injury data sources include surveys, police reports, trauma registries, emergency department data, newspaper and online media reports, and state and federal agency databases. OBJECTIVE: The objectives of this study paper were to (1) identify published articles on ORV-related injuries and deaths that used large databases and determine the types of datasets that were used, (2) examine and describe several national US-based surveillance systems that capture ORV-related injuries and fatalities, and (3) promote and provide support for the establishment of a federally-funded agricultural injury surveillance system. METHODS: In this study, we examined several national United States–based injury datasets, including the web-based AgInjuryNews, the Fatality Analysis Reporting System, databases compiled by the US Consumer Product Safety Commission, and the National Fatality Review Case Reporting System. RESULTS: Our review found that these data sources cannot provide a complete picture of the incidents or the circumstantial details needed to effectively inform ORV injury prevention efforts. This is particularly true with regard to ORV-related injuries in agricultural production. CONCLUSIONS: We encourage the establishment of a federally funded national agricultural injury surveillance system. However, in lieu of this, use of multiple data sources will be necessary to provide a more complete picture of ORV- and other agriculture-related injuries and fatalities.