Trends in Non-Fatal Traffic Injuries 1996 - 2005 NHTSA Technical Report DOT HS 810 944

An analysis of three major databases of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) shows that from 1996 through 2005, the annual number of "incapacitating" injuries due to motor vehicle crashes decreased by 25 to 28 percent. Incapacitating is a category of injury severity that represents the most severe non-fatal injuries. An incapacitating injury is a nonfatal injury that prevents the injured person from walking, driving, or normally continuing the activities the person was capable of performing before the injury occurred. This report utilizes three databases from NHTSA's National Center for Statistics and Analysis (NCSA). The databases are used separately to analyze trends in non-fatal motor vehicle injuries. Data was individually examined from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) from 1996 through 2005, the National Automotive Sampling System General Estimates System (GES) from 1996 through 2005, and 25 States in the State Data System (SDS) from 1996 through 2004.