The Dallas Morning News reports that the federal government is studying the rash of electric scooter injuries occurring around the countries. Here are the opening paragraphs:
Federal authorities’ latest health concern is roving cities across the country on two little wheels.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has announced it will send three epidemiologists to Austin to conduct the agency’s first study on electric scooter crashes in the U.S.
A CDC spokeswoman said in an email that Austin officials requested the agency’s help in investigating the injuries.
“The scooters are new, so we don’t know all the things about factors related to injury and the severity of injuries,” Dr. Philip Huang, health authority and medical director for Austin Public Health, said in an interview with the Austin American-Statesman. “It’s just a new problem to try to get a better understanding of what is going on, what are some of the dangers and what we might try to do to prevent injuries.”
The doctor told the Statesman that the epidemiologists will give questionnaires to people who were injured to look for patterns related to the severity of the injuries and factors involved in the crashes.
Many Dallas scooter riders have experienced firsthand the spectrum of injuries that can be caused by a fall or a crash. Some tumbles have led to skinned knees, black eyes and a chipped tooth. At least one crash resulted in a fatal head injury.
