Pregnancy linked to serious car crash risk

A new study has revealed pregnancy is related to a significant risk of a serious car crash requiring emergency medical care during the second trimester.

According to the study on 507 262 pregnant women, during the 3 years before pregnancy, the women had 6922 crashes (177 per month) and during the second trimester, the women, as drivers, had 757 crashes (252 per month).

Lead author Dr. Donald Redelmeier, a researcher with the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (ICES) and a physician at the Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, said that pregnant women often worry about air flights, scuba diving, hot tubs and other topics in maternal health, yet individuals may overlook traffic crashes despite their greater health risks.

The study also found that statistically, about 1 in 50 pregnant women will be involved in a motor vehicle crash at some point during pregnancy.

The study was published in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal).