Incidence and Injury Types in Motorcycle Collisions Involving Deer in Western New York

Motorcycle popularity, urban sprawl, and large deer populations result in a significant number of deer-motorcycle collisions. This retrospective review of a level I trauma center in Buffalo, New York, revealed that 40 of 487 (8.2%) of patients admitted because of motorcycle crashes from May 2007 through June 2011 involved deer. There were 120 total injuries: the most common were orthopedic (39/120; 32.5%), chest (38/120; 31.7%), head (18/120; 15.0%), spine (10/120; 8.3%), facial (8/120; 6.7%), and abdominal (7/120; 5.8%). Thirty-five of 40 (87.5%) were men and were older (48.9 years, [SD, 8.9 years]) than the average for all motorcycle crashes during the study period (41.9 years, [SD, 13.9 years]). Mean (SD) injury severity score was 17.1 (9.8), reflecting the severity of encountered injuries. This study highlights the relatively common risk that deer pose to the motorcyclist and is comparable to published series in more rural Midwestern settings.