3 POINT SHOULDER/LAP BELTS CAUSE SPINAL INJURIES
- Three Point Shoulder-Lap Belts save lives but increase incidence of spinal injuries. They increase the injury potential to the neck and back because they…
- (1) restrain the torso while allowing the head and neck to move more violently and
- (2) the restraint is unilateral, restraining only the driver’s left shoulder and the passenger’s right shoulder, causing a severe rotational force to the upper body.
- The increased injury potential to the lumbar spine is discussed later.