Unusual Connection Found Between Pregnancy and Automobile Accidents

By Thomas Greer | June 3, 2014

For all of the things that we know increase the risk of being involved in an automobile accident, there are, apparently, some rather surprising things that increase one’s automobile accident risk. Everyone knows that distractions of all forms increase the risk of having an accident. Likewise, it is well established that speeding increases accident risk. Did you know that driving during your second trimester of pregnancy also increases your odds of being involved in a car accident? Believe it or not, this phenomenon has been studied, and there appears to be a connection between that specific three-month time frame and a forty two percent increase in accident risk.

A study which was recently published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal concluded that a driver is forty two percent more likely to involved in a multi-vehicle crash after which she requires admission to a hospital emergency room during the second trimester of pregnancy than she was during the three year period prior to her pregnancy. Fortunately, the increased risk appears to be a short-term thing which only occurs during the second trimester. In the third trimester, a woman’s accident risk drops below her pre-pregnancy level. After her baby is born, risk continues to decline for approximately one year. To explain it a different way, any given woman has a one in fifty chance of being involved in a car crash at some point during her pregnancy.

As far as the reason why accident risk is elevated during the second trimester, one theory that researchers have is that women often feel their best during the second trimester, so they may not adjust their activities around being pregnant as much as women who are experiencing the discomforts of the first and third trimesters would. This lack of adjustment may mean that women are getting into the driver’s seat when they are more tired than they think they are, or that they have slower reflexes than they believe that they do.

Automobile accident risk is an interesting thing. There are many risks which are well known, and others which are being discovered every day. The researchers who conducted the Canadian study which found a connection between the second trimester of pregnancy and increased accident risk hope that their research will help women to gain awareness of the risk, and to use extra caution while driving, as opposed to avoiding driving completely during pregnancy or any other time. This same concern is shared by other groups of researchers who spend their time analyzing accident data and studying driver behavior.

While you may not be able to control the behavior of other drivers who share the road with you, you can take steps to reduce the risk that you will be involved in an automobile accident. Things like avoiding cell phone use altogether, abiding by the posted speed limits, and making sure that you are well rested are easy to understand, but many people are reluctant to do them for whatever reason.

If you have been injured or someone that you know has been killed in an automobile accident, it is important that you seek the assistance of a Memphis Automobile Accident Attorney. The knowledgeable Tennessee Automobile Accident Attorneys at Bailey & Greer, PLLC offer top quality legal assistance to automobile accident victims and their families. To learn more about how we can help you, please call us at 901-680-9777 to schedule a time to discuss your case.  At Bailey & Greer, PLLC, we are small enough to care, big enough to fight, and experienced enough to win.

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