title: How do children climb out of cribs?
abstract: 48 children between the ages of 16 and 32 mo. were observed climbing out of a crib. Each child was observed four times climbing out of the crib. All the children were able to walk independently and were less than 35 in. tall. Two different climbing patterns were identified and associated with a location of the climbing event within the crib environment. Most children (90%) climb from a crib by first moving to a corner of the crib and then start climbing from the crib. The remaining 10% of the children used a side-climbing pattern in at least one of the four observations. Crib safety standards have eliminated the most common catch-point, the cornerpost extension from cribs. Since at least 10% of the children climbed over the side of the crib rather than at the corner, any potential catch-points should be eliminated from the complete perimeter of the crib.
authors.affiliation: Biokinetics Research Laboratory, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA 19122, USA.
authors.forename: Marcella V
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: Ridenour
mesh_terms: D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D018730:Infant Behavior; D015370:Infant Equipment / Q000592:standards*; D008297:Male; D009949:Orientation; D011597:Psychomotor Performance; D012449:Safety