Bumbo Baby Seats & Head Injuries
Written by Faith Anderson on November 28, 2011
Risk of Falls and Head Injuries Associated with Bumbo Seats
According to the CPSC, infants aged three to ten months have fallen out of the Bumbo Baby Seat and suffered skull fractures and other serious injuries as a result. Since the baby seat was recalled in 2007, 17 of the 45 infants who fell from the Bumbo seat (three to ten months of age) suffered skull fractures. These incidents and injuries involved both recalled Bumbo seats and Bumbo seats sold after the recall with updated warnings regarding the dangers of elevated usage.
The CPSC and Bumbo are also aware of an additional 50 reports of infants falling or maneuvering out of the Bumbo seats used on the floor and at unknown elevations. These incidents included two reports of skull fractures and one report of a concussion, all of which occurred when the babies fell out of Bumbo Baby Seats used on the floor. According to the reports, these injuries occurred when the infants struck their heads on hard flooring or in one case, on a nearby toy.
Babies Using Bumbo Seats on Elevated Surfaces at Risk for Skull Fractures
The Bumbo seat is marketed as a product intended to help infants sit in an upright position as soon as they are able to support their own head. The product warnings included on the Bumbo seat state that the seat “may not prevent release of your baby in the event of vigorous movement.” The CPSC warns that babies as young as three months can fall or escape from the seat by leaning forward, arching backward, rocking, or leaning sideways.
At the time of the 2007 recall involving Bumbo Baby Seats, the CPSC was aware of 28 falls associated with the product, three of which resulted in skull fractures sustained by infants who fell or maneuvered out of the seat used on an elevated surface. The CPSC and Bumbo International are now aware of at least 46 falls from Bumbo seats used on elevated surfaces, which occurred prior to the 2007 recall, resulting in 14 skull fractures, two concussions and one incident of a broken limb. Due to the risk of serious injury to babies, the CPSC and Bumbo International are urging parents and caregivers to never place Bumbo Baby Seats on counter tops, tables, chairs, or other raised surfaces.