Factors involved in the assessment of paediatric traffic injuries and deaths

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.

Prevalence and potential consequences of child labour in India and the possible impact of COVID-19 – a contemporary overview

“…37 There is also a much higher rate of child pedestrian mortality and injury in countries of lower socioeconomic status, as children often work in stalls beside busy roads, in markets without safe or any footpaths, and even selling goods in and around idling vehicles at traffic lights. 38 Working can also significantly negatively impact upon social development if a child spends most of his or her time labouring instead of interacting with peers in communal play and learning how to socialize appropriately. Even adolescents who work may be affected, and it has been shown that teenagers who spend more than 20 hours per week working are at a higher risk of developing problematic social behaviour such as drug abuse and physical aggression.…”

“…There is also a much higher rate of child pedestrian mortality and injury in countries of lower socioeconomic status, as children often work in stalls beside busy roads, in markets without safe or any footpaths, and even selling goods in and around idling vehicles at traffic lights. 38…”

Characteristics of unnatural deaths in Tierra del Fuego, Argentina: A 10-year study (2008–2017)

“…For example, death rates in children from vehicle crashes/collisions are very high in countries with low socioeconomic status, where children often work beside busy roads and sometimes within traffic. 6 According to World Health Organization data, death rates from vehicles range from 45.1 per 100,000 population in Venezuela to 3.2 in San Marino. 5 In the present study accidents were the largest category of unnatural deaths, with 135 cases occurring over 10 years.…”

A Structural Design of a Child Seat Based on Morphological Elements and Ergonomics

“…The injury status of child occupants under correct and incorrect use of child seats was studied [ 18 ]. Three kinds of crash conditions were simulated and analyzed for the integrated safety seat, and the variable design parameters were optimized [ 19 ].…”