Reducing the legal blood alcohol concentration limit for driving in developing countries: a time for change? Results and implications derived from a time-series analysis (2001-10) conducted in Brazil

• Published in: Addiction (Abingdon, England) Vol. 106; no. 12; pp. 2124 - 2131
• Main Authors: Andreuccetti, Gabriel, Carvalho, Heraclito B., Cherpitel, Cheryl J., Ye, Yu, Ponce, Julio C., Kahn, Tulio, Leyton, Vilma
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.12.2011; Blackwell
• Subjects: Accidents; Accidents, Traffic - mortality; Accidents, Traffic - prevention & control; Accidents, Traffic - trends; Addictive behaviors; Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Alcohol; Alcohol Drinking - blood; Alcohol Drinking - legislation & jurisprudence; Alcohol Drinking - prevention & control; Alcoholic Intoxication - blood; Alcoholic Intoxication - prevention & control; Automobile Driving - legislation & jurisprudence; Biological and medical sciences; Blood; Brazil; Brazil - epidemiology; Capital cities; Developing Countries; Drink-driving; Drug addiction; Drunk driving; enforcement; Ethanol - blood; fatalities; Humans; Injuries; law; Law Enforcement; Legislation; Medical sciences; Models, Statistical; Police; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Road accidents; road traffic; Strikes, Employee; Time Factors; Time series; Traffic accidents & safety; Urban Health; Wounds and Injuries - epidemiology; South America; Brazil; America; Sao Paulo Brazil; Brazil, Sao Paulo; injuries; Developing countries; Alcohol; Time; Blood; Result; Alcoholic beverage; drink-driving; Time analysis; Drug addiction; road traffic; law; Ethanol; Vehicle driving; Legislation; Mortality; Time series; enforcement; Change; Concentration; Trauma; Addiction; fatalities; Legal aspect; Limit
• ISSN: 0965-2140; 1360-0443
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1360-0443.2011.03521.x

ABSTRACT Aims  In Brazil, a new law introduced in 2008 has lowered the blood alcohol concentration limit for drivers from 0.06 to 0.02, but the effectiveness in reducing traffic accidents remains uncertain. This study evaluated the effects of this enactment on road traffic injuries and fatalities. Design  Time–series analysis using autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) modelling. Setting  State and capital of São Paulo, Brazil. Participants  A total of 1 471 087 non‐fatal and 51 561 fatal road traffic accident cases in both regions. Measurements  Monthly rates of traffic injuries and fatalities per 100 000 inhabitants from January 2001 to June 2010. Findings  The new traffic law was responsible for significant reductions in traffic injury and fatality rates in both localities (P < 0.05). A stronger effect was observed for traffic fatality (−7.2 and −16.0% in the average monthly rate in the State and capital, respectively) compared to traffic injury rates (−1.8 and −2.3% in the State and capital, respectively). Conclusions  Lowering the blood alcohol concentration limit in Brazil had a greater impact on traffic fatalities than injuries, with a higher effect in the capital, where presumably the police enforcement was enhanced.