HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS REGISTER		Author Keyword(s) Vol Page [Advanced]

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Submit a response Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this link to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Add article to my folders Download to citation manager Request Permissions Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Waller, P. F Articles by Eribes, C. M Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Waller, P. F Articles by Eribes, C. M

Children dying in car trunks: how adequate are child death databases?

¹ Transportation Research Institute, University of Michigan
² School of Nursing, University of Michigan

Correspondence to:
Dr P F Waller, 1779 Crawford Dairy Road, Chapel Hill, NC 27516, USA
(email: pwaller{at}umich.edu)

Objective—To determine the frequency of and circumstances surrounding child deaths resulting from inadvertent entrapment in motor vehicle trunks in the US by querying child fatality review databases.

Method—A telephone survey was conducted with the persons or offices identified as having primary responsibility for child fatality review programs in each state. The survey requested information on the number of child deaths resulting from trunk entrapments, the ages of the victims, the time period covered by the surveillance system, and variables concerning the circumstances surrounding each incident.

Results—All states reported that these deaths are exceedingly rare, with most reporting no such events in recent history. However, state databases could not be readily accessed to identify such deaths. There was enormous interstate variation in guidelines governing the population covered by the child fatality review process. The age range varied greatly from one jurisdiction to another, and often only children in the state's welfare system were included. Interstate differences in practices preclude meaningful compilation of data across jurisdictions.

Conclusions—It was not possible to ascertain the incidence of inadvertent entrapment of children in vehicle trunks because there is no consistency in the available databases. A national database of child fatalities, based on standardized guidelines and definitions, is needed to identify causes and magnitude of specific child deaths, in order to design, implement, and evaluate interventions.

Keywords: child death databases; car trunk (boot); entrapment; hyperthermia; asphyxiation