• Gary M Vilke, Barbara M Stepanski, Leslie Upledger Ray, Margaret W Lutz, Patricia A Murrin, and Theodore C Chan.
• County of San Diego Division of Emergency Medical Services, San Diego, CA, USA. gmvilke@ucsd.edu
• Pediatr Emerg Care. 2004 Oct 1; 20 (10): 660-3.

BackgroundOn average, 24,000 children a year are treated in the emergency departments (EDs) for shopping cart injuries, with over 650 children a year requiring hospital admission. The authors sought to evaluate the incidence and outcomes of children in the community evaluated by paramedics because they were injured in shopping cart or stroller-related incidences.MethodsRetrospective design in which prehospital patients records were searched for all patients under 14 years old who were injured in an incident involving a shopping cart or stroller and were responded to by paramedics. Records were reviewed for demographics, injury type, and disposition.ResultsDuring the 3 1/2 year study period, a total of 241 cases were identified with 120 being shopping cart-related and 121 stroller-related. The most frequent ages for stroller injuries were 0 to 6 months and for shopping cart injuries was one year of age. Falls were the most common mechanism of injury, 70.3% for shopping carts and 47.5% for strollers, with head injuries accounting for 53% and 59% of the primary injuries in each group. An additional 12% and 18% suffered primary facial injuries. 77% of patients were transported by paramedics to an ED for evaluation, with 19% of parents signing out against medical advice. 8.2% were admitted to the hospital and there were no deaths.ConclusionsShopping cart and stroller-related injuries are a common mechanism of injury for pediatric patients responded to by paramedics. This is an area which continued parental education is needed.

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