Risk of Vehicle Accidents for Returning Military

Motor vehicle crashes (MVCs) account for almost one-third of deaths among service members every year. One study showed that within 6 months after deployment, military personnel had a 13% increase in at-fault accidents.

Using data from the Millennium Cohort Study and the Military Health System Data Repository, researchers from the Naval Health Research Center in San Diego, California, investigated possible risk factors.The researchers looked at both demographic and military-specific data, including service branch, health status (such as hearing loss and hours of sleep), and whether the individual had been diagnosed with depression, pain, or anxiety.

Of the 13,620 service members included in the study, 6,800 reported combat experiences; 107 had a MVC within 6 months following deployment.

Service members who had an MVC within 6 months postdeployment were more likely to report combat experiences, have more than one deployment, and be deployed for more than 365 cumulative days. Women, service members born after 1980, enlisted rank, African Americans, and those with baseline physical health symptoms and problem drinking were among those at greater risk. After adjusting for all variables, combat experiences nearly doubled the risk, and 3 or more deployments nearly tripled the risk of a MVC in the 6 months after deployment.

The researchers did not find an association between physical health symptoms, such as hearing loss, headache, or confusion, and MVCs, nor did they find a link between mental health symptoms and the severity of scores. That suggests that physical and mental health may not be the primary contributors to the association. In fact, the researchers say, the link between deployment and crashes may be multifactorial. For instance, service members may engage in risky driving behavior to recreate the emotions felt during combat. Although this study did not include questions about the use of seat belts, alcohol while driving, speeding, or other risk-taking behaviors, the researchers point to other studies that say that military personnel may not wear seat belts and may speed because that is what they got used to during deployment. The researchers also say that those who have participated in military combat may be inherent risk takers.

Multiple deployments, the researchers suggest, may instill “greater levels of risky driving behaviors that accumulate over time.” Length of deployment was not as crucial, which may mean that returning home more frequently puts service members in the driver’s seat more often.

The data suggest that a critical “window of time” may exist for preventing MVCs among the recently deployed. The researchers advocate intervention strategies early in the transition home.

Source
Woodall KA, Jacobson IG, Crum-Cianflone NF. Am J Prev Med. 2014;46(4):350–358.
doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2013.11.015.