Introduction: Deaths due to road traffic accident are one of the common forms of unnatural death and its history is old as the invention of the wheel. The head is the most prominent of the exposed parts of human body by virtue of its situation, choice in great majority of situations involving blunt trauma which may be accidental, suicidal or homicidal.

Materials & methods: The present study was undertaken on fatal head injury cases of road traffic accidents brought by the police to the mortuary of Al-Ameen Medical College and District Hospital, Bijapur for medico-legal autopsy between Oct 2003 Sep 2005, a total of 180 cases were studied.

Results: In the present stud of 180 cases, 150 (83.3%) were males and 30 (16.7%) females. Male, female ratio of 5:1 was observed. The maximum number of cases, 53 cases (29.5%) were seen in the age group of 21-30 years. The next in frequency was 25 cases (25.0%) seen in the age group of 31-40 years between 71-80 years 2 cases (1.1%) were seen. Most of the accident (20.0%) ccurred between 3pm to 6pm and between 9am to 12noon and 6pm to 9pm 27 (15.0%) cases occurred. In 2 (1.1%) cases the time of accident was not known. In the study most of the victims 137 (76.1%) died on the spot. The maximum time of survival was up to 6 hrs. Lorry and Truck was the commonest offending vehicle. Next in order was bus and unknown case was 7 (3.9%).

Conclusions: The male preponderance may be due males are more exposed to outdoor activities traveling. The reason for young adults most affected because they are the prime breads earners of the family, remains outdoor. The reason for the peak incidence of the accidents at 3-6hrs is multifold and includes hurry to reach home from place of work timed people after hectic work, rush traffic hours, in-adequate traffic control and fatigue to drive. Most victims died on the spot, this may be due to the severity of injuries sustained, lack of knowledge of first aid, delay in shifting the patient to trauma center etc.

Key words: Road Traffic accident, Head injury, Autopsy, Demographics.