Fractures and Other Common Injuries Caused by Seatback Failure in Accidents
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By PAGE Editor
A majority of people tend to believe that the greatest dangers in a car accident include rapid-speed collisions or mechanical failures in seatbelts and airbags. A sometimes overlooked danger is seatback collapse, which is a defect that can turn an otherwise minor accident into a close-to-dead disaster.
When the seat fails, the occupant is thrown brutally backward, with potentially fatal results. The risk is even greater for rear-seat passengers, who may be crushed by the front seat. The following sections will explore one of the most common injuries caused by seatback failure: fractures and other injuries.
How Seatback Failure Leads to Serious Injury
An adequately designed seatback must give stability and support during a collision, holding the occupant in a stable position. However, if the seatback fails in a motor vehicle crash, the person in the seat may be violently flung backward, hitting the interior of the car or colliding with other passengers. This failure upsets the natural crash response of the body, causing a myriad of injuries ranging from severe to fatal.
Common Injuries Caused by Seatback Failure
Fractures
Fractures are the most common type of injury in accidents, especially with seatback failure. When a seat collapses, the extreme force compresses the spine, causing cracks in the vertebrae. The outcome might include compression fractures, bulging of the disc, and trauma to the spinal cord, most likely demanding complex medical care and physical therapy.
Full or partial paralysis may follow serious incidents. Seatback failures may result in rib fractures, broken bones, or severe chest trauma from sudden backward motion.
Other Common Injuries
While fractures are the standard type of injury caused by seatback failure in accidents, there are some other injuries also the victim can incur. They are:
Head and Brain Injuries
When seatbacks collapse, occupants can be subjected to violent head movement or contact with rear compartment structures. It can have the following consequences:
Skull fractures
Facial lacerations and fractures
Severe concussions with long-term cognitive effects
Thoracic and Abdominal Injuries
Seatback collapse can also cause severe chest and abdominal area injuries, including
Lung contusions
Internal organ damage
Abdominal hemorrhaging
A study in the Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery has reported how abrupt seatback collapse can make the occupants slide beneath seatbelts, leading to extreme abdominal trauma due to belt compression.
Internal Injuries
Sometimes, the impact may result in internal injuries like punctured lungs, ruptured spleen, or bleeding inside the body, which may not be easily seen but can be fatal if there is no immediate medical attention.
Injuries to Rear Passengers
Seatback failures pose risks not just to the occupant of the failed seat but also to rear-seat passengers. Children tend to sit in the rear seats and are especially at risk when front seatbacks fold into their area upon impact.
According to a study conducted by the Center for Auto Safety, children riding behind folded front seats are at much greater risk of head and chest injuries than in similar crashes with intact seats.
Conclusion
A seat should save, not fail—when it counts the most. Still, weak seatbacks persist in turning life-saving crashes into life-ruining tragedies. In motor vehicle safety, each defect counts. Until stricter laws are enforced, drivers and riders continue to be exposed to a hazard they never see coming—until it's too late.
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