On two wheels and in harm's way: Motorcycle injury impact on readiness in active duty military

The impact of motorcycle trauma on military readiness is unknown. We sought to describe morbidity from major motorcycle trauma in active duty patients and to characterize its impact on active duty readiness.

This is a retrospective study of our Level I trauma registry from 2016 to 2023. Adult patients with motorcycle-specific injuries and identified as active duty military personnel were included. Patients were grouped by those who did or did not meet readiness standards based on injury type, procedures, and functional status at discharge. Demographics, hospital length of stay, Injury Severity Score, injury diagnoses, discharge characteristics, and toxicology and alcohol results were abstracted and overall impact to military readiness evaluated.

A total of 122 active duty patients met the inclusion criteria. The cohort was primarily male (97%), moderately injured, and young (median, 26 years), with a median hospital stay of 1 day. Lower extremity, abdominal wall, and scrotum/testis injuries were most prevalent. There were no patient deaths; however, 54% of patients were discharged with a physical limitation, and 18% of those required admission to an intermediate level of care. A total of 25.4% of patients were determined to have duty limiting conditions. Taken together with positive toxicology/alcohol screens in 46.7% of patients, 72.9% of patients were unfit for duty.

Over half of active duty personnel with motorcycle-related injuries had physical limitations with 25% being severe enough to compromise readiness. Personnel loss due to motorcycle injuries is avoidable and leads to deleterious outcomes for military operational capacity.

Prognostic and Epidemiological; Level III.