Air Bag Injury and the Dermatologist

Most new car models have driver-side air bags and many also have passenger-side and side-impact air bags. Air bags are known to be dangerous to small children and may cause death, fractures, and cerebral spinal injury.^1-3 However, the cutaneous manifestations of air bag injury are less well known. Additional potential air bag injuries include retinal damage and high-frequency hearing loss. The following case report illustrates significant burns from a low-impact air bag injury and reviews the pertinent literature.