A Comprehensive Review of Post-traumatic Injuries Among Formula 1 Drivers From 1950 to 2023: An Epidemiological Study.

Abstract

Purpose: To investigate the trends of injuries and mortalities throughout the 73-year history of Formula One (F1), and identify factors influencing driver injury and return to racing.

Methods: Public online archives were searched to compile injury and driver characteristics of all F1 drivers between 1950 and 2023. The F1 drivers' Wikipedia articles were reviewed for injuries or mortalities from F1 events. The sources for each injury or mortality were reviewed and cross-referenced with additional sources to ensure accuracy. The injuries were further subdivided by anatomical location to analyze overall trends in incidence. Injury incidence and significance trends were determined via the Pearson correlation coefficient, and binomial logistic regressions were used to determine the relationships between driver characteristics and injuries.

Results: The analysis included 865 F1 drivers. Overall, 264 total injuries and 43 deaths were reported in F1-related events. Across the analysis period, notable decreases were observed in total injuries (R = -0.48, P < 0.001), deaths (R = -0.56, P < 0.001), fractures (R = -0.42, P < 0.001), upper extremity injuries (R = -0.28, P = 0.007), lower extremity injuries (R = -0.29, P = 0.006), head injuries (R = -0.301 P = 0.003), torso injuries (R = -0.36, P < 0.001), internal injuries (R = -0.27, P = 0.01), and burns (R = -0.25, P = 0.017). Injury was more likely with more race entries (odds ratio [OR] = 1.01, CI = 1.004 to 1.013, P < 0.001) and less likely with increasing career racing points (OR = 0.998, CI = 0.996 to 0.999, P = 0.009). Drivers with lower extremity injuries were more likely to return to sport (OR = 2.89, CI = 1.36 to 6.16, P = 0.006) and less likely after experiencing internal (OR = 0.267, CI = 0.09 to 0.75, P = 0.013), head (OR = 0.485, confidence interval [CI] = 0.27 to 0.88, P = 0.017), and neck injuries (OR = 0.388, CI = 0.15 to 0.98, P = 0.046).

Conclusion: The evolution of safety regulations in F1 appears to have successfully reduced total injuries, total deaths, and most injury classifications.