The Global Road Safety Programme: work in progress

Reducing the incidence and mortality of traumatic brain injury in Latin America

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) represents a considerable portion of the global injury burden. The incidence of TBI will continue to increase in view of an increase in population density, an aging population, and the increased use of motor vehicles, motorcycles, and bicycles. The most common causes of TBI are falls and road traffic injuries. Deaths related to road traffic injury are three times higher in low-and middle-income countries (LMIC) than in high-income countries (HIC). The Latin American Caribbean region has the highest incidence of TBI worldwide, primarily caused by road traffic injuries. Data from HIC indicates that road traffic injuries can be successfully prevented through concerted efforts at the national level, with coordinated and multisector responses to the problem. Such actions require implementation of proven measures to address the safety of road users and the vehicles themselves, road infrastructure, and post-crash care. In this review, we focus on the epidemiology of TBI in Latin America and the implementation of solutions and preventive measures to decrease mortality and long-term disability.

The Road Traffic Injuries Research Network: a decade of research capacity strengthening in low- and middle-income countries

Road traffic crashes have been an increasing threat to the wellbeing of road users worldwide; an unacceptably high number of people die or become disabled from them. While high-income countries have successfully implemented effective interventions to help reduce the burden of road traffic injuries (RTIs) in their countries, low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) have not yet achieved similar results. Both scientific research and capacity development have proven to be useful for preventing RTIs in high-income countries. In 1999, a group of leading researchers from different countries decided to join efforts to help promote research on RTIs and develop the capacity of professionals from LMICs. This translated into the creation of the Road Traffic Injuries Research Network (RTIRN) – a partnership of over 1,100 road safety professionals from 114 countries collaborating to facilitate reductions in the burden of RTIs in LMICs by identifying and promoting effective, evidenced-based interventions and supporting research capacity building in road safety research in LMICs. This article presents the work that RTIRN has done over more than a decade, including production of a dozen scientific papers, support of nearly 100 researchers, training of nearly 1,000 people and 35 scholarships granted to researchers from LMICs to attend world conferences, as well as lessons learnt and future challenges to maximize its work.