Driveway Run-over Injuries:
A Preventable yet Continuing Tragedy
Kai Hsiao, Clinton Newbury, Rangi Dansey, Phil Morreau & James Hamill
Starship Children’s Trauma Service

Background
• Child pedestrian injuries significant cause of mortality and morbidity
• 25% of child pedestrian injuries in Auckland occur on driveways
• NZ may lead the world in this type of injury
• Previous key studies in NZ by Ian Roberts (1993, 1994, 1995) and Phil Morreau (2002)

Aims
• To provide an update on the current scope of the problem in Auckland
Has the incidence changed?
• To describe accident characteristics and identify risk factors

Methods
• Retrospective review of all cases of driveway run-over accidents
• 50-month period, Nov 2001-Dec 2005
• Cases identified from Starship, Middlemore and Auckland City Coroner
• Data collected on demographics, accident characteristics, injuries and outcomes, environmental factors and parental awareness

Results
• 93 cases, including 7 deaths, in 50-month period from Nov 2001- Dec 2005
• Incidence rate of 8.4/100 000 children per year
- compared with 7.6/100 000 in 1998-2001
• Mortality rate of 0.63/100 000 children per year
- compared with 0.64/100 000 in 1998-2001

Injuries and Outcomes
• Hospital admission, n=88
- Median length = 2 days (range <24hrs-21days)
• ICU admission, n=7 (8%)
- Median length = 2days (range 1-6days)
• Surgical intervention, n=32 (34%)
• Long-term complications, n=11 (13%)

What is the solution?
• Problem is children and vehicles sharing the same space
• Solution is physical separation of driveways from areas used by children

Public education:
    Beneficial
    Particularly targeted at high risk groups
    Recent launch of education resource by SafeKids
Vehicular modifications:
    Expensive A$900-1600
    Requires combination of camera and sensor
Driveway design:
    Optimal

Acknowledgements
The University of Auckland, for funding the research studentship
Phil Morreau and Sarah Kruger
Julie Chambers, Joy Gunn, Isabel Bird, and the team at SafeKids New Zealand
Tim Koelmeyer, Auckland Hospital Mortuary
Shanthi Ameratunga, Elizabeth Robinson and Daniel Exeter, of the Section of Epidemiology and Biostatistics