All terrain vehicles, or ATVs, don't require a license to drive so many parents think they are safe toys for kids. But, they are not toys and each year thousands of young riders and their families are paying a painful price.
The Grissom family of Chattanooga, Tennessee knows this pain all too well. Last month, 9-year-old Talon Grissom died after his ATV collided into a sport utility vehicle. He was racing his brother on their family's private dirt road when his ATV failed to stop, plunging him into the side of the sport utility vehicle. Talon, who was not wearing a helmet, died at the hospital shortly after the accident.
Talon is one of four children under the age of 16 who were killed in ATV accidents in Chattanooga since March alone. Reports show that many others have suffered serious life altering injuries ranging from severe scalp lacerations and fractures to blunt-force trauma to the abdomen and body.
According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), more than 135,000 Americans are injured in ATV-related accidents each year, 30 percent of them children. ATVs have always been thought of as toys, or fun machines, but they are not. ATVs can reach speeds above 60 miles per hour, weigh more than 700 pounds and tip over easily.
"You throw a 60-pound kid on top of a 200-pound vehicle, if the vehicle flips over on top of the child, the vehicle wins. It smashes, busts their spleen, busts the liver, busts their brain and they really don't have any control over these vehicles," says Pittsburgh's Children's Hospital trauma surgeon, Dr. Jeffrey Upperman.
Hundreds of trauma and plastic surgeons around the world agree with Dr. Upperman and are urging ATV riders, especially parents and children, to be more cautious and follow safety tips to help reduce the incidence of ATV-related injuries. Among the groups advocating ATV safety are The American Society of Maxillofacial Surgeons (ASMS) and the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).
Each year plastic surgeons treat thousands of children and adults with head trauma, eye injuries, disfiguring lacerations and facial fractures from ATV accidents. Members of the ASMA and ASPS strongly recommend the following CPSC safety tips for ATV riders:
- Get proper training for yourselves and children before operating an ATV
- Always wear protective gear "� especially a helmet (helmets can reduce non-fatal head injuries by 64 percent and deaths by 42 percent)
-Other protective gear includes: closed toed shoes, goggles, gloves, long pants and long-sleeved shirts to protect against cuts
- Children under 16 should never ride adult-sized ATVs
- Never ride tandem
- Most ATVs are designed for one person; a passenger can make it difficult for drivers to control the machine
- Don't ride on paved roads
- ATVs can be very difficult to control on pavement; collisions with cars and other vehicles can be deadly
- Never ride at night
- Don't ride under the influence
The American Society of Maxillofacial Surgeons is the oldest organization representing maxillofacial plastic surgeons. Its members are experts in craniofacial restoration who seek to advance the science and practice of surgery of the facial region and the craniofacial skeleton through constant research and advocacy for patients and practitioners.
The American Society of Plastic Surgeons is the world's largest organization of board-certified plastic surgeons. More than 90 percent of all board-certified plastic surgeons in the United States are members of the ASPS. Combined with the efforts of the ASMS, members of the ASPS hope to spread awareness of the dangers of ATVs to parents and children across the U.S.