Side impact crashes are the second most severe motor vehicle accidents resulting in serious and fatal injuries. One of the occupant restraint systems in the vehicle is the three point lap/shoulder harness. However, the lap/shoulder restraint is not effective in a far-side crash (impact is opposite to the occupant location) since the occupant may slip out of the shoulder harness. The present comprehensive study was designed to delineate the biomechanics of far-side planar crashes. The first part of the study involves a car-to-car crash to study the crash dynamics and occupant kinematics; the second part involves an epidemiological analysis of NASS/CDS 1988-2003 database to study the distribution of serious injury; the third part includes the mathematical MADYMO analysis to study the occupant kinematics in detail; and the fourth part includes an in-depth analysis of a real world far-side accident to delineate the injury mechanism and occupant kinematics. Results indicate that the shoulder harness is ineffective in far-side crashes. The upper torso of the belted driver dummy slips out of the shoulder harness and interacted with the opposite vehicle interior such as the door panel. The unbelted occupants had a similar head injury severity pattern compared to belted occupants. The present study is another step to advance towards better understanding of the prevention, treatment and rehabilitation of side impact injuries.

Although rare, IEEVP should be considered when the patient presents with elevated IOP in the presence of engorged episcleral veins. Idiopathic elevated episcleral venous pressure is often difficult to manage both medically and surgically.

This article outlines the history, development, and safety aspects of glass and its use in motor vehicles. It traces the manufacture and describes the characteristics of laminated and tempered glass. It further compares the differences in injuries caused by impact with laminated and tempered glass. The development, use, and results of high penetration resistance (HPR) laminated glass for windshields are examined. Head and neck injuries from impact with glass and glazing structures are delineated. Results of studies with laminated and tempered glass are presented. The probability and severity of injuries occurring secondary to partial or full ejection of vehicle occupants are discussed, and the differences between the performance of laminated and tempered glass are highlighted. Current research to quantify head and neck injury parameters caused by glass impact during rollover is described. The biomechanics of head and neck injury assessment and the development of injury prediction parameters and reference values, respectively, are reviewed.

Rollover accidents are one of the major types of crashes contributing to the serious or fatal injuries to occupants [1]. The roof crush in rollover accidents is associated with serious injuries to head and neck system [2]. The roof crush intrudes into the occupant survival space and imparts force to the head. The excessive force on the head subjects the cervical spine to injurious level. A commonly observed cervical spine injury in rollover accidents is locked facets with no major bony fractures that are often associated with the flexion-distraction type of loading [3]. Although numerous studies addressed the mechanism of locked facet injuries and the survival space issues [4–9], limited comprehensive efforts have been advanced so far. It is noted that humans tend to duck their head while startled due to sudden fear [10,11]. It is hypothesized that the occupants inside the vehicle tend to duck their heads as a protective mechanism to avoid impact on the head. Although range of motion of the cervical spine is well reported [12], the change in downward movement of the head-neck system (ducking) is not studied well. The present study quantifies the downward movement of the head-neck system of volunteers while seated erect.

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