July 27 2009
Airbags Prevent and Cause Injuries
Tagged Under : airbags, automobile accidents, cervical, Dr. William Smock, kentucky, severed thumb
Do car driver side airbags prevent injuries? There is no doubt that they do. Do these same airbags also cause injuries? Once again there is no doubt that airbags can cause serious injuries. Just ask Louisville, Kentucky’s own William Smock, M.D. who is an emergency room doctor at University Hospital and a professor at the University of Louisville Medical School. I was fortunate enough to see Dr. William Smock speak last month at a trial lawyer’s seminar. Dr. Smock is one of the leading experts nationally who is pushing for warning labels on airbags in cars. He has a proposed warning label for cars that he hopes will prevent some of these serious injuries.
Dr. Smock has seen injuries from airbag deployment ranging from burns, fractures, eye injuries, head and facial injuries, cervical spine injuries, abdominal injuries, broken arms and severed thumbs. My understanding is the location of many driver side airbags on the steering wheel is a location that protects but ads danger due to that location. The most common problem comes with trying to blow your horn at the time of impact. Your thumb goes to the horn button located on the side of the air bag and the same time the air bag deploys causing the injury. There are also horns located at the center of the steering wheel. When an auto accident is about to occur the natural reaction is to blow the horn. Your hand is on the horn at the same time the air bag deploys at a rapid rate causing serious injury. As you might assume Dr. Smock recommends not using a horn just prior to an accident.
Many people who weigh less than 120 pounds or 5 foot 2 inches or less are at risk. These individuals move their seats close to the steering wheel to be able to see to drive. Being that close to a deploying air bag can cause serious injury. As I recall the body should be at least 20 inches from the steering wheel. This will reduce the risk of injury.
Car accidents happen daily on Kentucky roads. There are serious injuries that occur that we have no control over. Take Dr. Smock’s warning seriously and help prevent these airbag injuries. They will save your life, but they must be respected.
