Airbags

In Arkansas, rates for motor vehicle death are about 70 percent higher than the national average, in part due to lower use of seat belts and child restraints in the state.  Arkansas Children’s Hospital admits nearly 200 children each year due to motor vehicle injury. In coordination with National Child Passenger Safety Week, February 12 through 18, Arkansas Children’s Hospital urges parents to buckle up their children in proper restraint seats. 

National Child Passenger Safety Week is observed each year during Valentine’s Day week; this year’s focus is on booster seats.  Despite increased awareness for age appropriate restraints for children between the ages of 4 and 8, booster seat use is estimated between only 10 and 20 percent nationally. Child safety seat use for infants and toddlers is estimated at more than 90 percent, with room for improvement. 

Motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of death among Americans, ages 3 through 33. The death rate in children is exceptionally high because they are often not restrained or improperly restrained. Each year, about 2,000 children younger than 14 years of age die and more than 265,000 are treated for injuries related to an automobile accident.  Half of the children killed in automobile accidents are not restrained. 

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