At the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI), 784 crashes involving steering wheel airbag deployments have been investigated in detail. A subset of only the frontal crashes, in which the steering wheel airbag deployed and driver stature was known, was formed (654 drivers). The vast majority of all drivers were lap-shoulder belted. Of these drivers, 70% sustained no injuries or an Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) 1 level injury. In these 654 crashes there were 204 "short" stature drivers, 165 cm or less in height (32% of all drivers). There were 40 of these with injuries at the Maximum Abbreviated Injury Scale (MAIS) 2 level, and 15 who survived with an MAIS injury level of 3 or 4. Details of the injury locations and contacts are presented. Data on the taller drivers (450) were similarly tabulated. Of the taller drivers (168 cm or more in height), 74% had a MAIS 0 or 1 level injury. Of taller drivers with the MAIS 3, 4 or 5 injuries, the majority (67%) had such injuries unrelated to the deployment of the airbag. Of all the MAIS 2+ injured drivers, short or tall, 60% had such injuries unrelated to airbag deployments. The lower extremity was the body area most often involved, followed by the brain and upper extremity injuries. (A)
Abstract