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Misuse of booster seats

¹ The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
² University of Pennsylvania and The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Correspondence to:
Shannon D Morris, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, 34th and Civic Center Boulevard, 3535 TraumaLink, 10th Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
(MORRISS{at}email.chop.edu)

Objective—To describe several aspects of booster seat use and misuse in a sample of children attending child safety seat clinics.

Methods—Booster seat practices were assessed at 76 child safety seat clinics held between April 1997 and January 1999 in Pennsylvania and southern New Jersey. At each assessment, a child passenger safety team evaluated the booster seat and identified modes of misuse.

Results—Altogether 227 booster seats were observed. Sixty eight per cent (68%) of shield boosters and 20% of belt positioning boosters were misused. Thirty two per cent of the children using a shield booster weighed more than 40 lb (18.1 kg); 68% of children in shield boosters and 63% in belt positioning boosters weighed less than 40 lb.

Conclusions—This study identified a relatively high rate of booster seat misuse. Shield boosters were more likely to be misused than belt positioning booster seats. Significant numbers of children weighing more than 40 lb were using possibly dangerous shield boosters. The majority of children in this study were less than 40 lb. In this weight range, a convertible child restraint system provides better protection than a booster seat. Booster seat use should only be initiated once the child has completely outgrown their convertible child restraint system.

Keywords: shield booster; belt positioning booster; misuse; child safety seat clinic

This article has been cited by other articles:

				E. A. Edgerton, K. M. Orzechowski, and M. R. Eichelberger Not All Child Safety Seats Are Created Equal: The Potential Dangers of Shield Booster Seats Pediatrics, March 1, 2004; 113(3): e153 - 158. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S D Morris Misuse of booster seats Inj. Prev., September 1, 2001; 7(3): 254 - 254. [Full Text]