Effect of restraining devices on eye injury in motor vehicle collisions

The aim of this systematic review is to summarize and critically evaluate the evidence for or against the effectiveness of restraining devices on eye injury in motor vehicle collisions (MVCs).In a PubMed search, the search terms "eye injury and seatbelt," "eye injury and car belt," "eye injury and airbag," and "eye injury and restraining" were used. Among the 30 potentially relevant articles, 5 articles met our inclusion criteria. The odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) from each study were abstracted. The statistical analysis was performed with Review Manager (The Nordic Cochrane Centre).Three studies were subgrouped, and a meta-analysis of these data suggested no significant effects of an airbag on increasing eye injury in MVCs (n = 10,123,954; OR, 1.10; 95% CI, 0.77-1.56). Two studies were subgrouped, and a meta-analysis of these data suggested that there are beneficial effects of seat belts on decreasing eye injury in MVCs (n = 43,057,271; OR, 0.50; 95% CI, 0.50-0.51).Seat belts were effective to decrease eye injuries in MVCs. However, airbags had no significant effect on an increase to eye injuries. When using airbags, seat belts should be used together.