Making the most of the worst-case scenario: should belt-positioning booster seats be used in lap-belt-only seating positions?

The impact of booster seat use on child injury and mortality: Systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies of booster seat effectiveness

OBJECTIVE

To determine through systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies if booster seats, compared to seatbelts alone, reduce injury and mortality from motor vehicle collisions among child passengers four to eight years of age.

METHODS

A comprehensive search of several data sources (including Medline, Embase, and PsycINFO) was conducted from inception to December 2016, to retrieve relevant publications in any language and from any geographic region. Data extraction was completed by two independent reviewers, capturing: study details, population characteristics, exposure (booster seat compared to seat belt use), outcomes (injury and fatality), and all associations reported between the exposure and outcomes. Risk of bias assessment was completed by two reviewers using the QUIPS tool. Meta-analysis of sufficiently similar studies was conducted using random effects models.

RESULTS

Eleven observational studies were included in qualitative syntheses. The systematic review and meta-analysis found no association between booster seat use, compared to seatbelts, and reduced injury (4 studies, OR 1.03; 95% CI 0.53-1.99) or fatality (2 studies, OR 0.91; 95% CI 0.73-1.13).

CONCLUSIONS

Evidence on booster seat effectiveness to protect against injury and mortality in real-world conditions is limited. This review identified the need for high quality studies assessing the effects of different models of booster seats on children of varying ages and weights.

Modeling improvements in booster seat use: a discrete choice conjoint experiment

Automobile crashes are the leading cause of death in children aged 1-14 years. Many children, however, are not properly restrained in safety seats that reduce serious injury and death. This study used a discrete choice conjoint experiment to study factors influencing the decision to use booster seats. Parents of 1714 children aged 4-9 years from nine Canadian provinces completed choice tasks presenting experimentally varied combinations of 15 4-level booster seat promotion attributes. Latent class analysis yielded three segments of parents. The choices of the Benefit Sensitive segment (50%) were most sensitive to the injury prevention benefits of booster seats. The choices of parents in the Context Sensitive segment (33.5%) were more likely to be influenced by installation complexity, oppositional behavior, and the prospect that their child may be teased for riding in booster seats. Parents in the High Risk segment (16.5%) were younger, less educated, and less knowledgeable about vehicle safety legislation. They anticipated fewer benefits, expected more barriers and were less likely to use booster seats. Simulations suggest that consistent enforcement coupled with advertising focusing on injury prevention and the use of booster seats by other parents would increase adoption.

Child passenger safety

Despite significant reductions in the number of children killed in motor vehicle crashes over the past decade, crashes continue to be the leading cause of death for children 4 years and older. Therefore, the American Academy of Pediatrics continues to recommend inclusion of child passenger safety anticipatory guidance at every health-supervision visit. This technical report provides a summary of the evidence in support of 5 recommendations for best practices to optimize safety in passenger vehicles for children from birth through adolescence that all pediatricians should know and promote in their routine practice. These recommendations are presented in the revised policy statement on child passenger safety in the form of an algorithm that is intended to facilitate their implementation by pediatricians with their patients and families. The algorithm is designed to cover the majority of situations that pediatricians will encounter in practice. In addition, a summary of evidence on a number of additional issues that affect the safety of children in motor vehicles, including the proper use and installation of child restraints, exposure to air bags, travel in pickup trucks, children left in or around vehicles, and the importance of restraint laws, is provided. Finally, this technical report provides pediatricians with a number of resources for additional information to use when providing anticipatory guidance to families.