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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Michael L. Nance, MD, Department of Surgery, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, 34th and Civic Center Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA 19104, (215) 590-5932, nance@email.chop.edu, Linda A. Hawkins, MSEd, Injury Free Coalition, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, 34th and Civic Center Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA 19104, Charles Branas, PhD, Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Room 807 Blockley Hall, 423 Guardian Dribe, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6021, Cara Vivarelli-O'Neill, MPH, TraumaLink, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, 34th St. & Civic Center Blvd., TraumaLink, 10th Flr., Philadelphia, PA 19104, and Flaura K. Winston, MD, PhD, TraumaLink, 34th & Civic Center Blvd, 3535 Traumalink- 10th Fl, Philadelphia, PA 19104.
Background: Motor vehicle-pedestrian (pedestrian) injuries are a common source of morbidity and mortality in the children. Prior studies have focused on pedestrian or traffic factors contributing to the high rate of injury. We evaluated the relationship between driving conditions and child pedestrian injury. Methods: Information was provided by the Police Department for all pediatric (age <18 years) pedestrian crashes in an urban county for the period 1/94 to 12/99. Data included age, pedestrian location and intent, time of day and date, and driving conditions. Results: For the period of review there were 3,823 children struck by motor vehicles (range 518-726 crashes/year) or 1.7 crashes/day. Crashes occurred when the street was dry (>90%) with no adverse weather conditions (>90%) during daylight hours or under streetlights (>92%). The most frequent day of the week was Friday (18.1%), the most common time of day 3-6 PM (38.7%). The spring months (39.1%) predominated, with May (14.0%) the most common month. Most injuries were minor (59.3%) with a fatality rate of <1%. Children were struck crossing mid-block in 46.8% of cases, crossing behind a vehicle in 38.8%; only 4.8% were struck while playing in the street. Conclusions: Pediatric pedestrian crashes are common and occur most frequently in optimal driving conditions; that is, good lighting with a dry road and good weather. Thus, optimal play conditions coincide with optimal driving conditions. Prevention efforts should focus on improving child safety and driver awareness at times of maximal child pedestrian exposure, during optimal driving conditions.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Pediatrics, Injury Prevention
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.