Statistically speaking...

Alicia-N-2SafeBugs

Senior Community Member
how much safer is RF?

Is there a stat for that? Like "Rear Facing is _____% safer than Forward facing." ???

I find that people want to know why to rear face after 1 year, but then don't want to listen to the explanation. I'm thinking that if I can say "it's ____% safer" I might get a better response.

Anyone know?
 
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jamwith3bugs

New member
I was just bored looking to see and found this site (it looks like it belongs to a CPST (there is a contact link - to verify the info if you wanted I'm sure): http://www.carseatsite.com/statistics.htm

This statistic is on it:
For children in car seats, forward-facing kids are 4 times more likely to be injured in a side impact than rear-facing kids.

I found this one too: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration currently recommends that parents switch their
children from rear-facing car seats to forward-facing car seats when the children reach 1 year and 20
pounds. But in Sweden, families tend to wait until the children are 3 or 4 years old to switch them to seats
that face forward. Sherwood’s review of U.S. data suggests that the rear-facing restraints result in lower
injury rates. Revising U.S. recommendations to more closely resemble those used in Sweden could reduce
the rate of injury and mortality of U.S. children in car accidents by more than 50 percent.

Here is the link: http://www.physorg.com/pdf78663976.pdf
 

joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician
35% is about how much safer the back seat is compared to the front seat, though :).

The carseatsite stats are really up to date, at any rate.

:)
 

soygurl

Active member
I like this quote:

His study, presented at a recent meeting of the American Academy of Pediatrics, involved 870 children under age 2 who had been in either rear-facing or forward-facing car seats at the time of an automobile accident. He found that the children in forward-facing seats were more than four times as likely to be injured in side crashes as opposed to the children in rear-facing seats. The study also found a small but not statistically significant benefit for facing rear in frontal crashes.

From http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9916868/
I think it's from the same study that jamwith3bugs posted...
 

murphydog77

Admin - CPST Instructor
Staff member
I was actually just looking for this stat the other day. It's about 60% safer. According to the tech curriculum, a rf seat is 71% effective in reducing death for infants (I read that to be rf kids). A ff seat is 54% effective in reducing death for kids ages 1-4. That's in Module C.

To calculate the percentage, you do this: (100% - 54%) divided by (100% - 71%) .
 

gwenvet

New member
I was actually just looking for this stat the other day. It's about 60% safer. According to the tech curriculum, a rf seat is 71% effective in reducing death for infants (I read that to be rf kids). A ff seat is 54% effective in reducing death for kids ages 1-4. That's in Module C.

To calculate the percentage, you do this: (100% - 54%) divided by (100% - 71%) .

Huh? Maybe my brain isn't working yet this morning but I can't figure how you got 60% from these numbers (46/29=1.5). Percents should be comparable, so to me, RF looks to be 17% (71-54) more effective at reducing deaths. Also don't forget that this is comparing two different populations of kids (infants vs. 1-4 yr olds), so not truly comparable. Am I missing something?
 

Splash

New member
I like this quote:

His study, presented at a recent meeting of the American Academy of Pediatrics, involved 870 children under age 2 who had been in either rear-facing or forward-facing car seats at the time of an automobile accident. He found that the children in forward-facing seats were more than four times as likely to be injured in side crashes as opposed to the children in rear-facing seats. The study also found a small but not statistically significant benefit for facing rear in frontal crashes.

From http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9916868/
I think it's from the same study that jamwith3bugs posted...


Excuse me? That makes absolutely NO sense at all.
 

joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician
Yeah, it does :).

Cars and seats have been so well designed for frontal crashes for so long, that there really isn't a huge difference. Side impacts are just lately being studied, and sure enough, having your head right next to an oncoming SUV bumper IS incredibly dangerous (thanks to IIHS for finding this out), and when you are contained in a rearfacing seat that rotates somewhat toward the impact and keeps you contained and away from hitting said door or bumper, you are 4 times better off than if your head flies forward and then toward the door, as it does in a side impact crash.
 
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Splash

New member
So are we just talking about HEAD injury here? Nothing else? Because sure, I can buy that if we're just talking about head injury. But if we're talking about overall injury, then how can RF only be marginally safer if at all in frontal impacts? And if THAT is the case, then what benefit is it to a child in the center to be RF vs FF? Because, really, is that is the case (which I don't believe for a second it is) then I am turning him around today and putting him in the center (can't go RF in the center).
 

joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician
No, I think they mean ALL injury is 4 times less when RF (imagine, if you will, little legs flying towards the door and front seatbacks, too, they are at more risk of getting whacked and broken then if they were nicely contained in a nice RF seat, too)
 

SPJ&E

New member
So are we just talking about HEAD injury here? Nothing else? Because sure, I can buy that if we're just talking about head injury. But if we're talking about overall injury, then how can RF only be marginally safer if at all in frontal impacts? And if THAT is the case, then what benefit is it to a child in the center to be RF vs FF? Because, really, is that is the case (which I don't believe for a second it is) then I am turning him around today and putting him in the center (can't go RF in the center).

I'm going to have to go with Splash on this one...that is confusing! I thought rear-facing was supposed to be SO much safer in all types of crashes?
 

SafeDad

CPSDarren - Admin
Staff member
Even for adults, side impacts cause the most fatalities to properly restrained passengers. Though frontal crashes are more common and severe, the majority of fatalities are to unrestrained and improperly restrained passengers. Occupant protection systems, including 3-point seatbelts, airbags, energy absorbing dash/wheel and child seats do a very, very good job when used correctly.

As Julie said, in the past the design emphasis has been for frontal crashes. Now that fatalities in frontal crashes have been reduced and those from side impacts are becoming more prevalent to properly restrained passengers, the automakers and child seat makers have been placing more emphasis there.

For properly restrained kids above 1 year and 20 pounds, we've always known the added risks of going front facing drop off (though they never go to zero). But being in the center doesn't necessarily keep a properly restrained child any safer than being outboard. There haven't been any compelling statistics to show this. Some CHOP studies have even shown that since you never known which side will be hit, the added protection of being hit on the far side almost balances the added risk of being struck on the near side, effectively making the risks similar to being in the center. Other studies you can find say the center or outboard is safer, but none really address the question only to properly restrained children.

Just from the physics of being rear-facing, I'm keeping DS that way as long as possible. I'm not concerned about him being in the outboard seat, though.
 

SPJ&E

New member
I thought a lot of the risk for FF was injury to the neck/spine, so wouldn't that be greater with a frontal crash? It doesn't make sense that there would be little difference in a rear-facing child or a forward-facing child in a frontal crash when it comes to the neck and spine. I'm not wording that the best way, but hopefully you'll understand what I'm trying to say!
 

SafeDad

CPSDarren - Admin
Staff member
That is a very good thread. I had some email discussions with Mr. Sherwood before he came over to post here. When his final study is released, it will be very interesting.
 

SafeDad

CPSDarren - Admin
Staff member
I think you have a valid question, but I don't think we will have any answers until the final study is released. There really isn't a whole lot of information in the preliminary findings. A lot of variables can account for significant differences.
 

SPJ&E

New member
It makes sense...thanks for your answers! Hopefully the study will be released soon and the information will be widely available...and maybe we won't see so many tiny babies forward-facing (I can dream)!
 

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