Motor vehicle crash injury rates in Missouri decreased among pediatric patients following enactment of the state’s booster seat law, according to a new study conducted by researchers at a St. John’s Mercy Health Care Level I Trauma Center in Springfield, MO.

The four-year study looked at pediatric trauma patients admitted to St. John’s Trauma Center as a result of motor vehicle crashes two years prior to and after enactment of the law, which went into effect Aug. 28, 2006. It requires children between the ages of 4 and 7 to ride in a belt-positioning booster seat until they weigh 80 pounds or are 4’9″ tall.

According to a Jan. 22 press release, findings show:

A 23 percent decrease in the number of pediatric patients admitted as a result of motor vehicle crashes in the two years after the law went into effect. The greatest decrease was among children 4-7 years old.
Trauma cases increased for 8- to 15-year-olds or children who were not riding in a booster seat.

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 12th, 2009 at 5:13 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.