Aviation accidents attributable to coronary artery disease have always generated undue publicity and alarm. Some workers in the field believe that flying (total hours flown) as well as type of aircraft affect the health of the coronary arteries. The present study concerns 206 autopsied military pilots with varying degrees of coronary atherosclerosis. The data demonstrate that the amount of flying time (when the age factor is considered) and type of aircraft are neither statistically related nor contributory to the severity of coronary atherosclerosis in pilots. Furthermore, a 10 per cent random sample of all military aviation accidents accessioned at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology from 1958 through 1968 demonstrates that coronary artery disease has a causal relationship to 0.4 per cent of military aviation accidents. A plea is made for extreme conservatism in implicating coronary artery disease in an otherwise unexplained aviation accident. Drastic elimination of older aircrew will not significantly reduce aviation accidents. (Author)


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    Title :

    Coronary Atherosclerosis in Military Pilots: I. Relationship to Flying and Aviation Accidents


    Contributors:

    Publication date :

    1968


    Size :

    4 pages


    Type of media :

    Report


    Type of material :

    No indication


    Language :

    English




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