Cribs can be pretty dangerous places.
The first national study to look at injuries sustained in bassinets, cribs and playpens finds that nearly 10,000 kids a year are seriously hurt when they're in precisely the places parents expect are safe. The injuries were serious enough to require a trip to the emergency room.
Cribs accounted for 83 percent of the injuries over the 19-year study period ending in 2008. Falls are the biggest problem and caused two-thirds of injuries identified in the paper, published online by the journal .
The rate of injuries declined a bit over the study period, but "the consistently high numbers of these injuries" show that "current prevention strategies are inadequate," the researchers conclude.
About 1 in 5 injuries was a concussion or other head injury that didn't break the skin.
The authors of the study, which relied on data collected from a sample of hospitals by the Consumer Products Safety Commission, called for better design of equipment to make it safer.
Safety hazards with cribs, bassinets and playpens have led to the recall of more than 11 million of them since 2007, the CPSC says.
New CPSC standards that take effect in June will ban drop-side cribs and require upgrades for safety and testing.
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