Common Injuries in Child Pedestrian Accidents

A pedestrian accident can be an overwhelming and terrifying moment in one's life, according to Tampa pedestrian accident lawyer Ronald Bone. The feelings of panic and uncertainty are normal reactions after a pedestrian accident. The case gets even worse if it involves a minor. 

The 2024 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, or NHTSA, statistics indicate a worrisome trend. Specifically, 17% of child deaths under the age of 15 are caused by motor vehicle casualties, which were accounted for by pedestrians as per the report. In that very year, pedestrian accidents caused 7,080 deaths, and 71,000 other individuals were involved in accidents but survived.

Younger children are more susceptible to pedestrian-vehicle accidents because of their very nature. Their physical vulnerability and limited understanding of road hazards only serve to increase the likelihood that cars will hit them.

Let’s establish what the common injuries to child pedestrians are following an accident.

Why Children Sustain Different Injuries Than Adults in Pedestrian Crashes

The physics of a vehicle hitting a child is different when compared to an accident involving an adult. The difference in both events carries both clinical and legal weight in real life. An adult who gets struck at bumper height might see the first blow land mostly on the legs. But a child, even at a similar body weight, with a shorter frame and a different overall build, ends up taking more of the impact to the upper body, the abdomen, and the head.

A child’s head is proportionally larger and also heavier compared with total body mass than an adult’s head. So a head injury is not only more likely, but it’s also more difficult to gauge right after the collision.

Pediatric trauma medicine talks about a particular injury pattern sometimes referred to as Waddell’s triad. It’s named after the way these children are commonly struck. The triad includes a femoral shaft fracture caused by the first bumper contact; a thoracic or abdominal injury related to the fender or hood on the same side; and then a head injury on the opposite side. 

That opposite-sided head injury happens when the child is thrown and hits the ground or another surface. For medical and legal contexts, the point of Waddell’s triad is clear: if a child shows up with a leg fracture by itself after a vehicle strike, you should not assume that the fracture is the only injury. Knowledge of Waddell's triad is enough reason to always do a full imaging workup and a broad trauma assessment for child victims of car accidents.

In these cases, it’s important to understand the legalities involved in personal injury claims involving minors. Minors lack the legal capacity to file a claim, so a parent or legal guardian must do so on their behalf.

Traumatic Brain Injury: The Injury That Looks Fine at First

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is one of the most serious and also the most legally underestimated injuries when it comes to child pedestrian accidents. TBIs are often overlooked partly because the full impact of the injury is often not obvious that same day, at least not to everyone. After an accident, it may appear that a child is doing fine, that he or she is alert and responsive, but there may still be a concussion or another kind of damage happening inside the brain. Such injuries can develop gradually over days, weeks, or even months. Later on, the effects of the injury can manifest in less obvious areas like erratic academic performance in school, mood swings in the presence of the caregiver, instability in emotional reactions, or even difficulty bonding with other people.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has found that TBI in children creates a different kind of danger when the brain is developing compared to when it has reached maturity inside an adult’s head. Since children’s brains are still growing and wiring, an injury that disrupts neural development can set off consequences that early imaging might miss and then later come through as thinking or conduct changes over time. So a child who was doing well in school before the pedestrian accident, but then starts stumbling in the next semester, may have had a TBI that nobody noticed in the emergency room.

From a legal standpoint, this delayed way of showing up is one of the most important reasons to push for careful documentation. After a road traffic accident, it is usually best to create a medical examination report within 24 hours to document the collision and the injuries sustained. One should seek a second opinion if necessary. In the absence of rigorous documentation, the insurance company can easily refute all claims submitted and blame the injury on other factors.

Fractures: Visible and Hidden

Femur and Long Bone Fractures

It has been observed that there is a notably high incidence of femoral shaft fractures in child pedestrians. This injury is one of the components of Waddell’s triad. In cases where the fracture is found in the shaft region, surgery often becomes inevitable and necessitates the use of tools such as intramedullary rods or any other suitable medical equipment. Then, this phase is followed by a protracted period of healing that may include not doing any strenuous physical activity for several weeks and then eventually engaging in physical therapy sessions. In younger kids, the growth plates can get involved too. Any treatment that was done on these parts might affect limb length and overall development. The effects can manifest sometimes over multiple years and not right away.

When kids suffer an impact, they instinctively put an arm straight in front of them to avoid the fall. When the hand or arm makes contact with a solid surface, the force of the fall and the impact with the surface are absorbed and distributed by the hand. A lot of these injuries end up as compound fractures so orthopedic surgeons might have to use a surgical fix of the bones instead of plastering. Collarbone fractures, coming from direct impact, are also seen regularly among child pedestrian victims. If collarbone fractures are not treated properly, they can involve the shoulder joint and permanently affect movement. Proper and early medical intervention helps avoid these problems.

Growth Plate Injuries

Growth plate injuries kind of are a special type of fracture that only really shows up in children, and they really do deserve close attention in pedestrian accident claims. The growth plates, also called physeal plates, are bits of cartilage near the ends of the long bones. This is where new bone tissue gets produced as a child grows. Since this cartilage is softer and not as rigid as mature bone, it tends to break more easily under the forces that happen in a vehicle impact. Growth plate fractures might not show up on routine X-rays, so an MRI can be needed to confirm what’s going on.

The most relevant aspects are those that are not visible at first glance, especially in a court of law. Fractures of the growth plate can cause long-lasting injuries that may stop a limb’s elongation and lead to deformities and arthritis. Solving this problem effectively requires proper pediatric orthopedics training. Quantifying the impact of the injury to the child’s future involves multiple projections well beyond the initial series of medical treatment.

Internal Injuries: The Critical Category Most Often Missed

In child pedestrian incidents, abdominal and thoracic injuries are the critical organs that are part of the multisystem trauma picture. An accident may lead to splenic lacerations, liver contusions, kidney injuries, and even bowel perforations after a fender or a hood strike. Such injuries can be grave and even life-threatening. The worst part is that they do not always have clear external signs in the presence of a victim.

If the child reports stomach trouble or any belly injuries, it is important to rule out pre-existing problems by conducting intensive medical imaging. Emergency Department professionals may hesitate to order an abdominal film if the primary concern is limb trauma. That’s one of the reasons why parents who know about Waddell’s triad injury pattern are better positioned to push for a full evaluation even if the child’s obvious injuries look like they’re confined to only one body region.

Soft Tissue Injuries and Road Rash

Soft tissue injuries and road rash from accidents often result in contusions, sprains, and muscle tears. They are also among the most often undervalued items in insurance claims since they’re not always obvious on standard imaging tests. Their true impact is best described by a compelling set of medical reports and accurate background information.

Road rash is a form of injury caused by friction when the skin briefly hits a non-smooth surface. The levels of road rash range from mild itchiness to much more severe skin injuries that may require medical intervention. Severe road rash that affects a large area of the skin may happen to children and could increase the risk of infections. It can also leave scars with real medical and psychological weight. The child afflicted with this condition can also experience chronic discomfort. A child who can’t quite get back to play or sports, or who starts avoiding movement to reduce the pain of the injury, might be suffering from anxiety and emotional distress. These effects should be documented carefully and handled as part of a full assessment of the damage, not only the immediate injury.

What Comprehensive Injury Documentation Requires

The injuries that are most likely to lead to long-time consequences in children hit as pedestrians often don’t look fully obvious on the day of the crash. A traumatic brain injury can show up later as quiet behavioral tweaks and school performance changes over months. Growth plate fractures might call for an MRI to really see them, and even then the full effect can take decades to understand. The effects of internal injuries can manifest after being dormant for months or years.

The paperwork that supports a full legal claim has to do more than list the immediate harm. It should also trace the recovery path of the child and note any deviation from the child’s pre-accident developmental behavior.

Children's neurologists, orthopedic doctors and trauma surgeons will ascertain the specific injuries sustained by the child during the crash and their implications on pursuits of child developmental goals.

For parents or guardians seeking compensation, having strong evidence is important. Medical records will cover everything from emergency treatment to aftercare. School records and past behavior reports would be the best to use to explain how a child was before the incident occurred.