A retrospective analysis of the National Automotive Sampling System Crashworthiness Data System (NASS/CDS) database from 1993 to 2000 was used to investigate lower extremity injury in lateral impact. The analysis includes the study of the injury patterns, crash characteristics and the interactions between the occupant and the vehicle interior, including injuries to the farside occupants. The findings include significantly different injury patterns for the nearside and farside impacts. In particular, while the proportion of pelvis/hip injuries, with respect to AIS 2 and AIS 3 lower extremity skeletal injuries and 2-4 and 10-8 o'clock side impacts, was higher in nearside (70.4%) than farside (38.3%), the opposite trend was observed for the thigh (2.8% vs 4.5%), knee (6.2% vs 16.7%), leg (10.1% vs 19.5%) and foot/ankle (5.6% vs 14.7%) injuries. Analysis of the principal direction of force (PDOF) suggested that a large proportion of the impacts occurred obliquely, at approximately 10 and 2 o'clock, with a rearward component of force. It is hoped that the findings of the current study can help to investigate injury mechanisms.
Abstract