Big Changes in AAP Car Safety Guidelines

“I think there's going to be broad acceptance of this,” said Dr. H.

Garry Gardner. “I personally think that there's enough realization that

we're dealing with a safety issue for this to be widely accepted.”

Dr. Gardner said he had already counseled two mothers of babies

turning 1-year-old on the new recommendations, and both responded very

positively. “One mom was relieved to find that she could still use the

same rear-facing seat until her baby was 30 pounds – she thought she'd

have to buy another car seat,” he said. “The other said she was

intending to keep her child facing rearward until age 3.”

Pediatricians may be concerned that the new recommendations will take more time to discuss with parents, Dr. Gardner said.

However, he predicted that the new AAP recommendations will be

quickly disseminated, especially with the help of the National Highway

Safety Traffic Administration and other agencies and groups. “They've

been waiting for the academy to take the lead on this,” he said in an

interview.

DR. GARDNER is professor of clinical pediatrics at Northwestern

University, Chicago, and chairman of the AAP committee on injury,

violence, and poison prevention that developed the recommendations. He

said he had no relevant financial disclosures.