Effectiveness of Belt Positioning Booster Seats: An Updated Assessment

Abstract

WHAT'S KNOWN ON THIS SUBJECT:Previous research demonstrating the benefits of booster seats over seat belts for children is outdated. Because more children, particularly older children, are now restrained in booster seats, it is important to provide an updated assessment of booster seat effectiveness. WHAT THIS STUDY ADDS:This study reconfirms that booster seats reduce the risk for injury in children aged 4 through 8 years. BPB seats should continue to be recommended until at least 8 years of age once a child outgrows a harness-based restraint.abstract OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to provide an updated estimate of the effectiveness of belt-positioning booster (BPB) seats compared with seat belts alone in reducing the risk for injury for children aged 4 to 8 years. METHODS:Data were collected from a longitudinal study of children who were involved in crashes in 16 states and the District of Columbia from December 1, 1998, to November 30, 2007, with data collected via insurance claims records and a validated telephone survey. The study sample included children who were aged 4 to 8 years, seated in the rear rows of the vehicle, and restrained by either a seat belt or a BPB seat. Multivariable logistic regression was used to determine the odds of injury for those in BPB seats versus those in seat belts. Effects of crash direction and booster seat type were also explored. RESULTS:Complete interview data were obtained on 7151 children in 6591 crashes representing an estimated 120 646 children in 116 503 crashes in the study population. The adjusted relative risk for injury to children in BPB seats compared with those in seat belts was 0.55. CONCLUSIONS:This study reconfirms previous reports that BPB seats reduce the risk for injury in children aged 4 through 8 years. On the basis of these analyses, parents, pediatricians, and health educators should continue to recommend as best practice the use of BPB seats once a child outgrows a harness-based child restraint until he or she is at least 8 years of age.

Carpooling and Booster Seats: A National Survey of Parents

“…Booster seats have been shown to substantially reduce the risk of severe injury in motor vehicle collisions. 1,2 As a result, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines for child passenger safety recommend that children use a booster seat from the time they outgrow their forwardfacing car seat until they reach 57 in tall. 3,4 Booster seat laws, variously covering 4-to 8-year-old children, have been enacted in 47 US states over the last decade.…”

Seven great achievements in pediatric research in the past 40 y

“…74,75). Over the past four decades, however, significant headway has been made in reducing pediatric fatality rates due to motor vehicle injuries, dropping by 55-78%, even though the annual number of miles that Americans travel on our nation's highway has doubled over the same period (76)(77)(78) (Figure 7).…”

“…Appropriate car seat use reduces the risk of death for infants by 71% and for toddlers by 54% (75). Appropriate booster seat use for children aged 4-8, when compared with seat belt use alone, can reduce the risk of serious injury by 45% (78). For teenage passengers becoming drivers, graduated driver licensing now in all states are associated with reductions of 38 and 40% in fatal and injury crashes, respectively, among 16-y-old drivers (79).…”

Child passenger safety: protecting your patients on every trip

“…Felizmente, para crianças que são muito pequenas para o cinto de segurança de adulto, os assentos de segurança infantis (ASI), seja na forma de cadeirinhas com cintos ou assentos de elevação, podem reduzir significativamente o risco de injúria física e morte [3][4][5] em uma colisão, por meio da distribuição das forças pelas superfícies rígidas e ósseas e evitando a ejeção do veículo. Aumentos substanciais no uso de assentos de segurança para crianças nos EUA levaram a uma redução, nos últimos 10 anos 6,7 , de quase 50% nas mortes de crianças no trânsito 8 .…”

“…Embora a promoção do uso de dispositivos de contenção em cada viagem seja a prioridade mais alta, a proteção ideal exige o modelo correto, sempre no banco de trás: o assento certo, na hora certa e da forma certa. Isso é importante, uma vez que qualquer mau uso do ASI pode levar a um risco maior de lesão grave ou morte 4,5 . O termo "mau uso" abrange a ampla variedade de uso impróprio de ASI, incluindo: 1) escolher o dispositivo de contenção incorreto para a criança; 2) fixar o ASI ao veículo de maneira frouxa ou incorreta; e 3) prender a criança no ASI de maneira frouxa ou incorreta.…”