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The Importance of Booster Seats

Auckland paediatric intensivists Dr Gabrielle Nuthall and Dr Liz Segedin often see injuries that could have been prevented by the correct and continued use of car seats and booster seats. “Car seat belts are designed for adults not for children. Children are safer in a car seat or booster seat until they are 148cm tall,” says Gabrielle. The types of injuries that can result from a too-short child wearing an adult seat belt are horrendous. Liz describes: “The most common is nasty head injuries, spinal chord injuries and what we call ‘lap-belt syndrome’, where the lower spinal chord is damaged. We also see big tears in abdominal organs and lots of bleeding problems”.

The easiest way to tell if a child still needs a car seat or booster seat is to get an accurate height measurement. If the child is shorter than 148cm tall, a car seat or booster is recommended. You can also take the 5-step test. When your child sits on the vehicle seat (without a booster): 1. Does he/she sit all the way against the car seat? 2. Do knees bend comfortably at the edge of the car seat? 3. Does the safety belt cross the shoulder between the neck and arm? 4. Is the lap belt as low as possible, touching the thighs? 5. Can he/she stay seated like this for the whole trip?

Any “no” answer indicates that the child needs a booster seat for safety.

To order FREE Safekids Car Passenger Safety resources, email. An article interviewing Drs Nuthall and Segedin will run in the December issue of GP Pulse.