NTL Record

Title A Comparison of Postmortem Coronary Atherosclerosis Findings in General Aviation Pilot Fatalities
Record ID 39486
Personal Name
Creator
Booze, Charles F.; Staggs, Clara M.
Corporate Creator Civil Aeromedical Institute
Corporate
Contributor
United States. Office of Aviation Medicine
Publisher Civil Aerospace Medical Institute
Publication Date 19850800
Language English
Abstract Autopsy reports of 710 pilots involved in fatal general aviation accidents and received by the FAA for the years 1980-82 were reviewed to appraise the age-specific prevalence of coronary atherosclerosis among the autopsied group and compare findings with those of an earlier study of a similar pilot group. Sixty-nine percent of the autopsies on pilots killed in aircraft accidents indicated some degree of coronary atherosclerosis ranging from minimal to severe. This finding is higher than for a similar group of pilots studied during the years 1975-77. However, only about 2.5 percent of the 1980-82 study group were found to have severe coronary atherosclerosis, compared with 5 percent in the previous study. Prevalence of severe coronary atherosclerosis increased with age from 5.8 per 1,000 for ages less than 40 years to 73.9 for ages 50 years and above, also reflecting lower age-specific rates for severe coronary atherosclerosis than were found in the previous study. Recent emphasis on autopsy format and attention to sudden incapacitation is felt to have resulted in more accurate reporting for recent years. Prevalence of severe coronary atherosclerosis among the recently studied pilot group was less than that observed in an earlier study of a similar group.
Rosap ID dot:21267
Rosap URL https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/21267
TRT Terms Air transportation crashes; Air pilots; Fatalities; Autopsies; Cardiovascular diseases; Medical records
General Subjects Aircraft accidents; Air pilots; Sudden death; Autopsy; Coronary heart disease; Atherosclerosis; Medical records
Classification NTL - SAFETY AND SECURITY - Accidents;
NTL - AVIATION - AVIATION
Geographical
Coverage
United States
Report Number DOT/FAA/AM-85/6
Resource type Tech Report
URL https://ntlrepository.blob.core.windows.net/lib/39000/39400/39486/AM85-06.pdf
Format PDF
Database NTL Digital Repository