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. 2022 Sep;11(9):5211-5225.
doi: 10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_2464_21. Epub 2022 Oct 14.

Facilitators and barriers to bicycle helmet use: A qualitative evidence synthesis

Sucharita Panigrahi  1   2 , Samina Parveen  3 , Jaya Singh Kshatri  1 , Sanghamitra Pati  1 , Soumyadeep Bhaumik  2   3
Affiliations

Facilitators and barriers to bicycle helmet use: A qualitative evidence synthesis

Sucharita Panigrahi et al. J Family Med Prim Care. 2022 Sep.

Abstract

Background: Bicycles are environment-friendly and is an effective physical activity intervention to decrease risk of non-communicable diseases. Family physicians and primary care workers play a key role in promoting its usage, including addressing safety concerns through the use of bicycle helmet use. The uptake of bicycle helmets is low in many settings. We aimed to understand facilitators and barriers to bicycle helmet use.

Method: We searched five major electronic databases, screened references and manually searched conference abstracts for qualitative studies that focused on facilitators and barriers to bicycle helmet use. We critically appraised the studies using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP) checklist and used PROGRESS-Plus tool for an equity-focused analysis. We conducted a thematic synthesis for analysis and used GRADE-CERQual to report confidence in findings.

Results: We included 15 studies from high-income countries. We identified 4 themes: 1. Perceptions on helmet design, it's quality and cost together with experiences influencing helmet use (10 studies, low confidence); 2. Perceived risk and benefits of helmet use through a gender lens (10 studies, moderate confidence); 3. Parental strategies influencing children's behavior regarding helmet use (6 studies, moderate confidence); 4. Adoption and enforcement of laws that shape perception and usage of bicycle helmets (8 studies, very low confidence).

Conclusion: Our study identified facilitators and barriers and can be considered for developing programs and strategies to influence bicycle helmet use, but the confidence in findings is not high. Family physicians and primary care workers should consider these factors when promoting bicycle helmet for injury prevention. There is a need for more qualitative studies in different contexts to develop more robust evidence.

Keywords: Bicycle helmet; bicycling; health behaviour; qualitative; systematic review.

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Conflict of interest statement

There are no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
PRISMA flowchart showing inclusion of studies
Figure 2
Figure 2
Methodological quality of include studies using CASP tool
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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