A 22-year-old male driving a car at a high speed and not wearing a seatbelt, leaves a road and crashes with a full frontal impact into a tree. Which of the following injury patterns may be predictable from this type of motor vehicle accident?

a. Orthopedic injuries involving the knees, femurs, or hips

b. Laceration to the aorta

c. Hyperextension of the neck with cervical spine injury

With frontal impact, when the vehicle stops abruptly, unrestrained front-seat occupants move in one of two predictable pathways—down and under the dashboard or up and over the steering wheel. With the former movement, the knees strike the dashboard, and the upper legs absorb the primary energy transfer. Dislocated knees, fractured femurs, and posterior fracture dislocation of the hips are expected injuries. After the knees impact, the upper body flexes forward and up and over the steering wheel. The chest or abdomen impacts the steering wheel and the head impacts the wind shield

Predictable injury patterns following the up-and-over component of a frontal impact include the following: 1) anterior chest wall compression; 2) compression injuries to both hollow and solid abdominal viscera; 3) shear injuries such as lacerations to the aorta or liver, kidneys or other solid viscera; 4) injury to the brain from direct compression with scalp lacerations, skull fractures and cerebral contusions or from deceleration or shear forces; 5) acute neck flexion, hyperextension or both resulting in cervicThree-point passenger restraints and air bags, although overall very effective in reducing injury, can cause specific related injuries. Common injuries when lap belts are incorrectly strapped above the anterior iliac spine include compression injuries of intraabdominal organs (liver, pancreas, spleen, small bowel, large bowel), increased intraabdominal pressure and diaphragmatic rupture.al spine injury.