Risk of Pediatric Back-over Injuries in Residential Driveways by Vehicle Type

Abstract

Objective: Research suggests that children experience driveway back-over injuries at a significant rate and the severity of the resulting injuries differ by type of vehicle. Yet, no US study attempted to quantify "back-over risk" for classes of vehicles because of the difficulties with determining exposure. Using vehicle registration information, we set out to estimate the relative risk of driveway back-over injuries to children by type of vehicle. Methods: Driveway back-over events were identified from state police reports and medical records from the state level 1 pediatric trauma center and compared with vehicle registration information to estimate injury incidence for 4 classes of vehicles (passenger cars, trucks, sport utility vehicles, and minivans) over 6 years in the state of Utah. Results: Reported driveway back-over injuries represent an incidence of 7.09 per 100,000 children (P = 0.01) and 2.4 times more likely to be injured by a minivan (P < 0.001). Among children transported to a trauma center, admission (P = 0.01) and need for surgery (P = 0.03) were greater among children backed over by trucks, sport utility vehicles, and minivans compared with passenger cars. Conclusions: Findings suggest that when assessing driveway back-over injuries, larger high-profile vehicles are associated with a higher incidence and severity of injuries when compared with injuries resulting from passenger cars.