Editorial
If you weren’t in Durban in April, you missed a terrific professional experience! More than 1,200 delegates from over 50 countries were at the four-day session. A wide range of papers – from domestic violence to peace and reconciliation efforts to traffic and home injuries – were presented in seminars, plenary sessions, and in poster presentations.

More than a dozen poster sessions focused on helmets. In this issue of Headlines are abstracts for some of these sessions. There was also a plenary session that featured several innovative papers on helmet biomechanics, motorcycle injury, promotion of helmets for children, and controversies on helmet laws.

Another highlight of Safety2006 was the formation of ISVIP – the International Society for Violence and Injury Prevention. This new international group will advocate for increased injury and violence prevention funding, expand the network of professionals in the violence and injury prevention field, and prepare international events and conferences such as the World Conference on Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion. ISVIP held its first meeting during the conference, and a Board of Directors was elected. Professor Leif Svanstrom is the first chairman of the Board of Directors.

The next world conference on injury prevention and safety promotion – Seguirdad 2008 - will be held in Mexico, March 15-18, 2008. We’ll have more information about the conference in a future issue of Headlines.

We have begun to move ahead with our efforts to develop a consensus design for motorcycle and bicycle helmets that can be used in tropical countries. We have established a special listserve group for this and several epidemiologists, traffic safety experts, and biomechanics researchers are joining our efforts to establish the design elements for helmets that will be effective, economical, and comfortable in tropical climates. If you are feel that you have experience or expertise that can contribute to this discussion, please send me an email.

As ever, we thank you for your readership and welcome your contributions and suggestions to this website and to Headlines.

Philip L. Graitcer
Facilitator, WHO Helmet Initiative

Stringent Traffic Laws May Have Increased Helmet Use in One Brazilian City
New traffic laws, with strict and costly penalties for violators, may have contributed to a rise in the number of motorcyclists wearing helmets in one Brazilian metropolitan area. read more

Motorcycle Helmet Scofflaws – A Burden on Society?
Mandatory motorcycle helmet laws remain a controversial issue in some places. Some opponents say studies used to support those helmet laws are flawed – and that the regulations violate their personal freedoms. read more

Universal Bicycle Helmet Use Recommended by Emergency Physicians
The American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) has recommended that all bicyclists wear a properly fitted Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)-approved bicycle helmet. read more

Studies from Thailand, Los Angeles Say Helmets Effective in Preventing Death, Injury
Two academic studies, separated by 25 years and thousands of miles, have come to the same fundamental conclusion:  using a motorcycle helmet helps prevent death and serious brain injuries in many crash victims. read more

Commentary: Frustration Voiced Over U.S. States’ Unwillingness to Impose Mandatory Helmet Laws
A cry of frustration, over the unwillingness of some U.S. states to impose mandatory motorcycle helmet laws, was published as a commentary in the recent Annals of Emergency Medicine. read more

Laws, Even Minimally Enforced, Appear Effective in Increasing Bicycle Helmet Usage
The stick, rather than the carrot, may indeed be the best method to get bicyclists to wear helmets. read more

Helmet Posters at Safety 2006
At least a dozen poster presentations on promotion, design, and efficacy of motorcycle helmets and bicycle helmets were on view during the  recent World Conference on Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion held in South Africa. read some of the presentations