Citation

Cheng YW, Fletcher EN, Roberts KJ, McKenzie LB. Acad. Pediatr. 2014; 14(3): 256-261.

Affiliation

Center for Injury Research and Policy, the Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio; Department of Pediatrics, The Ohio State University, College of Medicine, Columbus, Ohio; Division of Epidemiology, The Ohio State University, College of Public Health, Columbus, Ohio. Electronic address: Lara.McKenzie@NationwideChildrens.org.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2014, Academic Pediatric Association, Publisher Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.acap.2013.12.006

PMID

24530221

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Baby gates are one of the most widely used home safety products to protect children from home hazards. The objective was to describe the epidemiology of baby gate and barrier-associated injuries among children. It was hypothesized that injuries experienced by children ages ≤2 years and those >2 years were significantly different as a result of differences in gate interactions. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted by using nationally representative data from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System. A total of 1188 actual cases were reviewed and national estimates generated. RESULTS: An estimated 37,673 children were treated in emergency departments for injuries associated with gates, yielding an average of 1884 cases annually. The incidence of gate-related injuries increased significantly from 3.9 per 100,000 children in 1990 to 12.5 per 100,000 children in 2010 (P < .001). Patients were primarily boys (61.0%) and were <2 years of age (60.4%). Patients <2 years of age were most often injured by falls down stairs (odds ratio 6.72; 95% confidence interval 6.32-7.16) after the collapse of the gate. Patients aged 2 to 6 were most often injured by contact with the gate (odds ratio 2.03; 95% confidence interval 1.95-2.12), resulting in open wounds (55.4%) and soft-tissue injuries (24.2%). CONCLUSIONS: Given the clear dichotomy between injury characteristics of patients aged <2 years and patients aged 2 to 6 years of age, as well as the prevalence of preventable injuries, greater efforts are needed to promote proper usage, ensure safety in product design, and increase awareness of age-related recommendations for use of gates.

Language: en