| Motor vehicle collisions are the leading cause of injury and death in American children. Booster seats prevent injuries in children who have outgrown child seats, but are not tall enough for seat belts.;The objective was to examine the association between booster seat laws and death, law and restraint use, and restraint use and death.;Child passengers (4-8 years) in FARS (1995-2005) were included. Logistic regression was used to assess the odds of death and correct restraint use between states with and without a law.;With a law, children were less likely to die (OR: 0.80; CI 0.66 to 0.96) and were more likely to be restrained (OR: 1.90; CI 1.65 to 2.19), specifically in booster seats (OR: 3.95; CI 3.39 to 4.61). Restrained children were less likely to die (OR: 0.36; CI 0.29 to 0.44) than unrestrained children.;Booster seat laws decrease child deaths and increase correct restraint use. |
