Citation

Hitosugi M, Kawato H, Gomei S, Mizuno K, Tokudome S. Pediatr. Int. 2013; 55(5): 624-628.

Affiliation

Department of Legal Medicine, Dokkyo Medical University School of Medicine, Tochigi, Japan.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2013, Japan Pediatric Society, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/ped.12140

PMID

23701244

Abstract

BACKGROUND: We aimed to clarify the pattern of child pedestrian injury, injury severity, and its relation to the collision velocity of bonnet-type vehicles. METHODS: We retrospectively collected in-depth data from the Institute for Traffic Accident Research and Data Analysis on pedestrians younger than 13 years old with any bodily injuries from collisions with bonnet-type vehicles between 1993 and 2004. RESULTS: Forty-seven patients from 43 collisions with a mean age of 6.9 ± 2.5 years were included in the study. Injury severity was not significantly different between patients who were hit by the front of the vehicle and those who were hit by the side of the vehicle. In front collisions, vehicles caused significantly higher Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) scores than those that were caused by impact with the road, especially for the lower extremities (mean: 1.2 vs. 0.2, p < 0.001). Injury severity of the lower extremities and collision velocity were examined. The estimated collision velocity of the vehicle was not significantly different between patients with lower extremity AIS scores of 0 or 1 and those of 2 or 3. CONCLUSIONS: Some pediatric pedestrians suffer from bonnet-type vehicle collisions without lower extremity fractures owing to the characteristics of child pedestrians. Providing injury prevention programs for children in communities and schools, developing active safety devices in the vehicle, and modifying the vehicle body to a pediatric pedestrian-friendly structure may increase pedestrian protection.

Language: en