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. 2022 May 11;10(5):884.
doi: 10.3390/healthcare10050884.

Comparison of the Injury Mechanism between Pregnant and Non-Pregnant Women Vehicle Passengers Using Car Crash Test Dummies

Ayumu Kuwahara  1 , Masahito Hitosugi  1 , Arisa Takeda  1 , Seiji Tsujimura  2 , Yasuhito Miyata  2
Affiliations

Comparison of the Injury Mechanism between Pregnant and Non-Pregnant Women Vehicle Passengers Using Car Crash Test Dummies

Ayumu Kuwahara et al. Healthcare (Basel). .

Abstract

This paper analyzes the kinematics and applied forces of pregnant and non-pregnant women dummies sitting in the rear seat during a frontal vehicle collision to determine differences in the features of abdominal injuries. Sled tests were conducted at 29 and 48 km/h with pregnant and non-pregnant dummies (i.e., MAMA IIB and Hybrid III). The overall kinematics of the dummy, resultant acceleration at the chest, transrational acceleration along each axis at the pelvis, and loads of the lap belt and shoulder belt were examined. The belt loads were higher for the MAMA IIB than for the Hybrid III because the MAMA IIB had a higher body mass than the Hybrid III. The differences in the lap belt loads were 1119 N at 29 km/h and 1981-2365 N at 48 km/h. Therefore, for restrained pregnant women sitting in the rear seat, stronger forces may apply to the lower abdomen during a high-velocity frontal collision. Our results suggest that for restrained pregnant women sitting in the rear seat, the severity of abdominal injuries and the risk of a negative fetal outcome depend on the collision velocity.

Keywords: frontal motor vehicle collisions; negative fetal outcome; pregnant women.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
(A) Kinematics of the MAMA IIB and Hybrid III at a delta-V of 29 km/h in tests 1 and 2; (B) kinematics of the MAMA IIB and Hybrid III at a delta-V of 48 km/h in tests 3 and 4.
Figure 1
Figure 1
(A) Kinematics of the MAMA IIB and Hybrid III at a delta-V of 29 km/h in tests 1 and 2; (B) kinematics of the MAMA IIB and Hybrid III at a delta-V of 48 km/h in tests 3 and 4.
Figure 2
Figure 2
(A) Time courses of the resultant accelerations of the chest in tests 1 and 2; (B) time courses of the resultant accelerations of the chest in tests 3–5.
Figure 3
Figure 3
(A)Time courses of the longitudinal accelerations of the pelvis in tests 1 and 2; (B) time courses of the longitudinal accelerations of the pelvis in tests 3–5.
Figure 4
Figure 4
(A) Time courses of the loads of the lap belt in tests 1 and 2; (B) time courses of the loads of the lap belt in tests 3–5.
Figure 5
Figure 5
(A) Time courses of the loads of the shoulder belt in tests 1 and 2; (B) time courses of the loads of the shoulder belt in tests 3–5.
Figure 5
Figure 5
(A) Time courses of the loads of the shoulder belt in tests 1 and 2; (B) time courses of the loads of the shoulder belt in tests 3–5.
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