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Updated: Aug 13, 2026

A Test Bed to Examine Helmet Fit and Retention and Biomechanical Measures of Head and Neck Injury in Simulated Impact
Published on: September 21, 2017
Misconceptions regarding case-control studies of bicycle helmets and head injury
Peter Cummings1, Frederick P Rivara, Diane C Thompson
1Harborview Injury Prevention and Research Center, University of Washington, Seattle, USA. peterc@u.washington.edu
Abstract:
A number of published case-control studies have reported that bicycle helmets are associated with a reduced risk of head injury and brain injury among bicyclists who crashed. A paper in this journal offered several criticisms of these studies and of a systematic review of these studies. Many of those criticisms stem from misconceptions about the studies that have been done and about case-control studies in general. In this manuscript we review case-control study design, particularly as it applies to bicycle helmet studies, and review some aspects of the analysis of case-control data.
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