ASTM Play Yard Panel to Look at Head/Neck Entrapment Worry

An ASTM F15.18 panel on play yards January 11 reviewed a concern raised by Health Canada about children possibly becoming trapped under cantilevered accessories. Although initially met with doubt due to lack of data and uncertainty about whether the scenario was realistic, the concern eventually grew on teleconference participants. The worry is with children at the pre-walking stage of pulling up onto objects for balance when moving around. Health Canada wondered if their doing this with the sides of play yards risks their becoming entrapped under accessories during exploration.

The initial doubt involved whether age-appropriate toddlers would be tall enough and flexible enough to reach the heights and body angles for incidents to occur. As well, given that many of the accessories of concern are newish, there is little data.

On the data point, CPSC staff on the call noted there is at least comparable data involving long-used items like changing surfaces placed atop play yards. As well, quick checks of anthropometric data of top percentile 18-24 month olds suggested needed heights might be possible. As for the flexibility question, that came from a participant who had used a CAMI dummy to assess likelihood, but there were questions of whether such devices represent a child's ability to contort.

Thus the panel will look at the potential. There might be models in other standards with bunk beds the initial target.