The seat belt syndrome

Objective: To report on: 1. Prevalence of seat‐belt sign in motor vehicle accident victims with abdominal injuries; 2. Prevalence of intestinal injuries in patients with seat‐belt sign; and 3. Spectrum of abdominal injuries in a population with high usage of three‐point restraints. Methods: A retrospective chart review was conducted in an adult tertiary‐referral hospital from January 1992 to August 1998. Patients were identified from International Classification of Disease‐9 codes for abdominal wall and intra‐abdominal injuries. Results: The seat‐belt sign was present in 60/99. The proportion of intestinal injuries in patients with and without seat‐belt sign were 9/60 and 0/39, respectively (P = 0.01). In the 25 patients with intra‐abdominal injuries, there were 10 hepatic, 8 splenic, 9 intestinal and 4 retroperitoneal injuries. Conclusion: The seat‐belt sign is indicative of an increased risk of intestinal injury, which is difficult to detect with no single test providing reliable diagnosis. Other intra‐abdominal and retroperitoneal injuries may also occur, which are more readily diagnosed on computed tomography scan or focused abdominal utlrasound when available, but are no more frequent in patients with the seat‐belt sign than those without.

show abstract

“…After the initial description of the seat‐belt sign, numerous case reports of its association with specific injuries were published 7–15 …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Abdominal injury and the seat‐belt sign

2001

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In non-penetrating abdominal traumatic injury, occurring in patients with their seat-belt fastened, vascular damage has been attributed to the action of direct and indirect forces generated by the rapid deceleration of a vehicle involved in a high-speed collision [23,26]. The action of direct forces crush the aorta between the vertebral column and the seat-belt: when the vertebrae are fractured by these forces, the resulting bone fragments may lacerate the aorta [10,17,19], similarly to that which occurs in anterior osteophytosis [11]. The effects of the indirect forces, that are produced by hyper-flexion of the torso and, consequently, of the abdominal aorta, are both mechanical (sudden longitudinal stretching by distraction forces) and hydraulic (acute increase of intraluminal pressure) and combine to produce a BAAD [8].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Blunt abdominal aortic disruption (BAAD) in shear fracture of the adult thoraco-lumbar spine: case report and literature review

et al. 2011

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

To present a rare case of association of abdominal aorta rupture and flexion-distraction fracture of thoracolumbar spine and to review the literature on this condition. In non-penetrating abdominal traumatic injuries with flexion-distraction fractures of the thoracolumbar spine, rupture of the abdominal aorta is an extremely rare occurrence but its outcome is potentially lethal. This association of skeletal and vascular lesions mainly affects young patients and involves the thoraco-lumbar junction and the portion of the aorta that lies in front of it. The authors analyze the pertinent literature and describe a case, operated in two sittings, of a traumatic lesion of the aorta attributable to a fracture of L1, focusing on mechanism of damage, diagnosis and surgical treatment. At 2-year follow-up examination, there were no neurological deficits. A review of the pertinent literature has shown that mortality can be reduced by a meticulous clinical and radiological work-up for a correct diagnosis followed by surgical repair of any damaged vessels. The possibility of performing a rapid diagnosis by means of total-body CT-scan plus CT-angiography allows repair of vascular damage, stabilization of the patient's hemodynamic conditions and, subsequently, surgical treatment of the vertebral fracture.

show abstract

“…[5] However, in unusual circumstances (high velocity motor vehicle collisions) these safety measures (seat belts) can be the source and cause of serious injuries. [6789] Kulowski and Rost[10] in 1956 first described seat belt-related injuries. Garrett and Braunstein[8] described the “seat belt syndrome” as early in 1962, but Doersch and Dozier[9] discussed the term “seat belt sign” in 1968.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…[6789] Kulowski and Rost[10] in 1956 first described seat belt-related injuries. Garrett and Braunstein[8] described the “seat belt syndrome” as early in 1962, but Doersch and Dozier[9] discussed the term “seat belt sign” in 1968. In the present article, we describe an illustrative case of seat belt injuries and review the relevant literature.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seat belt sign and its significance

Agrawal¹,

Inamadar²,

Subrahmanyam³

2013

J Family Med Prim Care

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Safety belts are the most important safety system in motor vehicles and when worn intend to prevent serious injuries. However, in unusual circumstances (high velocity motor vehicle collisions) these safety measures (seat belts) can be the source and cause of serious injuries. The seat belt syndrome was first described as early by Garrett and Braunste in but the term “seat belt sign” was discussed by Doersch and Dozier. Medical personnel's involved in emergency care of trauma patients should be aware of seat belt sign and there should a higher index of suspicion to rule out underlying organ injuries.

show abstract

The seat belt syndrome

Cited by 67 publications

References 7 publications

Abdominal injury and the seat‐belt sign

Abdominal injury and the seat‐belt sign

Blunt abdominal aortic disruption (BAAD) in shear fracture of the adult thoraco-lumbar spine: case report and literature review

Seat belt sign and its significance

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About