Although airbags are supposed to make everyone safer in their cars, it has been reported in various studies that in some cases, the dangers and airbag injuries inflicted almost outweigh the risks. For both women and children, air bags can pose a significant risk. Additionally, when an airbag goes off, the driver and passenger run the risk of serious airbag injuries to the eye among other facial injuries.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has reported that since 1990, airbag deployments in minor and major accidents has been responsible for the deaths of 227 people. Of those 227 people, 76 were driving the vehicle, 10 were adult passengers in the front seat of the car, 119 of the victims were children between the ages of 1 and 11, and 22 of the victims were infants. Of the 76 adult drivers killed, over 30% of them were small stature women under 5 feet 2 inches tall, and 40% of the adult passengers that were killed were females under 5 feet 2 inches tall.
When airbags were developed for major distribution, they used a male of approximately 5 feet 8 inches tall and of 180 lbs as their target audience and in their prototype development. Men of this height and weight typically sit between 10 and 12 inches away from the car steering wheel, from where most driver side airbags deploy. The problem with this system is that although anyone larger than the prototype is conceivable safe, those under this height and weight may be in danger. Now, it is well known that children under the age of 12 must ride in the back seat because of potential dangers caused by airbags, but it is now becoming clear that air bags may be dangerous to all passengers since the chance of air bag injury are signifigant.
For instance, Dr Maria-Segui Gomez, a leading airbag researcher, reported that female drivers are only truly receiving any kind of protective effect from airbags at speeds over 32 to 38 mph. Ms Gomez’ study, published in the American Journal of Public Health in October of 2000 added at lower speeds, the potential for injury to women of all heights from airbags outweighs the benefits of having them installed for protection.
Airbags have also been known to cause severe eye injuries when they deplete, in major or minor traffic accidents. In some cases, these severe air bag injuries have even led to blindness. The report, which was published in the Journal of Ophthalmic Surgery and Lasers, notes that there was a wide variety of eye damage directly linked to airbag deployment, including bruises in the eye socket and ranging to a critically ruptured eyeball which eventually led to blindness. The most common air bag injuries were simple bruising of the socket and some bleeding in the eyeball. Unfortunately, all five patients who suffered from this bleeding eventually developed angle-recession glaucoma.
In some cases, airbags also deploy when there is no collision and this typically results in major automotive recalls. If you have been injured by an airbag that deployed without collision or if you have suffered an air bag injury because of an airbag in a minor traffic accident, you may want to consult with a personal injury attorney to assess whether you have a product liability of personal injury lawsuit.