Citation

O'Donovan S, van den Huevel C, Baldock MRJ, Byard RW. Med. Sci. Law 2018; 58(4): 210-215.

Affiliation

School of Medicine, Adelaide, Australia.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2018, British Academy of Forensic Sciences, Publisher SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/0025802418790857

PMID

30058443

Abstract

Motor-vehicle collisions are the leading cause of unintentional injury and death in children in many parts of the world, including Europe, North America and Australia. The number of fatal collisions has decreased considerably in countries where safety measures such as child restraints, seat belts and air bags have been introduced, providing protection for children within vehicles, although it is recognised that there have been concomitant improvements in emergency responses and techniques, and in hospital treatments. Helmets and changes in external vehicle designs have been implemented to protect paediatric pedestrians and cyclists. However, despite the development of safety guidelines and technologies, injuries still occur. This paper provides an overview of the role of motor-vehicle collisions in paediatric morbidity and mortality to analyse the nature and aetiology of common fatal and non-fatal injuries in children that may present for forensic assessment as passengers, pedestrians or cyclists.

Language: en

Keywords

Motor-vehicle collisions; air bag; autopsy; childhood; cyclist; infant; passenger; pedestrian; safety measures; seatbelt