Airbags Save Lives, Reduce Hospital Costs
Posted on: Monday, 19 May 2008, 15:00 CDT
New airbags may cut costs at U.S. hospital trauma centers as well as help protect people from vehicle injury and death, researchers say.
Dr. Regan F. Williams of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis says the original airbag, widely available in the 1980s, could pose a risk to young children and drivers of small stature but newer airbags are better.
Using both a seatbelt and an airbag can substantially reduce the severity of injury for motor vehicle crash victims, Williams said in a statement. For hospitals, the use of an airbag can mean tremendous cost savings due to reduced length of hospital stay and fewer hospital-acquired infections.
A study, published in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, evaluated 14,390 motor vehicle crash victims admitted to trauma centers.
In comparison with unrestrained motor vehicle crash victims, victims who used both seatbelts and airbags were less likely to sustain severe injuries to the brain, face, spine, and chest.
Source: United Press International
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