Improper use of child restraints increases risk of injury fourfold

CHILDREN WHO are restrained in the back of a car with just a lap belt and not the whole seatbelt are at greater risk of injury, doctors have warned.

Research published in the Irish Medical Journal (IMJ) suggests that the risk of serious spinal injury to a child is increased 3.5-fold if they are restrained with just a lap belt, and the risk of significant head injuries is increased fourfold.

Some parents tend not to restrain their children using the seat belt across the shoulders, as it rides up into the child’s face.

Doctors at Temple Street Hospital also warned that parents who did not use booster seats for their children were putting them at unnecessary risk.

Six doctors, who put their names to a survey in the IMJ, strongly recommended the use of child safety belts and later of booster cushions until the child fits properly into the vehicle seat belt – usually between the ages of nine and 10.

The doctors detailed four cases which occurred in the last year, involving children who suffered serious injuries made worse by only having a lap belt. One 22-month-old child died 24 days after being admitted to hospital and two ended up with paraplegia of the lower limbs. The fourth was quadriplegic and ventilated for 18 months post-injury.

A similar study in Canada found that a quarter of Lap Belt Syndrome (LBS) cases in children ended up being paraplegic.

The injuries were caused by the rapid deceleration of the car, the sudden jerking of the body forward and the compression of the abdominal organs between the lap belt and the spine.

The sudden stopping of a car causes the spine to flex at the upper lumbar level rather than at the hips, which can result in severe injuries of the abdomen and of the lumbar spine.

The Temple Street Hospital doctors said that children should be restrained using a three-point anchor, and that this was only achieved by means of using a shoulder strap in addition to a lap belt.

“This case series illustrates clearly that we need to increase professional and parental awareness on proper restraint use in child car passengers,” they wrote.