Jumbelic M I
Center for Forensic Sciences, Syracuse, New York 13210, USA.
J Forensic Sci. 1999 Sep;44(5):1079-81.
A toddler died as the result of choking on a toy ball that occluded his upper airway. The size of this toy was within the federal safety standards for use by children under the age of three years. Though it has been recognized since 1987 that the minimum safe diameter set by the Federal Hazardous Substances Act may be too small, no change has been made to the regulation (1). In 1995 a comprehensive review of asphyxia related to the size of the foreign object found 4.44 cm diameter and 7.62 cm length a more comprehensive standard (1). Currently federal warning labels are required on some items that contain balls smaller than 4.44 cm to prevent use by children less than three years of age (2). The small parts fixture test in use by the federal government is available as a safety tool for parents to use at home. Unfortunately the "safe" diameter of 3.17 cm is too small to provide assurance that a toy is not a choking hazard.
一名幼儿因被玩具球噎住导致上呼吸道堵塞而死亡。该玩具的尺寸符合联邦针对三岁以下儿童使用的安全标准。尽管自1987年以来人们就认识到《联邦有害物质法》规定的最小安全直径可能过小，但该规定并未作出改变（1）。1995年，一项关于与异物尺寸相关的窒息情况的全面审查发现，直径4.44厘米、长度7.62厘米是更全面的标准（1）。目前，一些直径小于4.44厘米的含球物品需要贴上联邦警示标签，以防止三岁以下儿童使用（2）。联邦政府采用的小零件固定装置测试可供家长在家中作为安全工具使用。不幸的是，3.17厘米的“安全”直径过小，无法确保玩具不存在噎塞危险。
