CHICAGO -- All-terrain vehicles pose a serious risk of injury and even death, according to the largest study ever conducted of ATV injuries in children.

The findings were presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).

"Our experience shows that children's use of ATVs is dangerous and should be restricted," said Chetan C. Shah, M.D., radiology fellow at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and Arkansas Children's Hospital in Little Rock.

ATVs -- motorized vehicles with large, low-pressure tires, designed for off-highway use -- can weigh up to 600 pounds and travel up to 75 miles per hour.

While the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children under the age of 16 be prohibited from operating ATVs, no laws are in place in most states.

ATV accidents are seldom reported because the vehicles are unlicensed and typically operated off-road or on private land.

According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), ATV-related injuries in children under the age of 16 more than doubled from 1995 to 2005 with 40,400 children treated in hospital emergency rooms nationwide in 2005.

This figure represents nearly one-third of all ATV-related injuries treated that year.

Child fatalities resulting from ATV accidents have also nearly doubled since 1995 with 120 reported deaths in 2005.

"There is nothing 'recreational' about a trip to the emergency room," Dr. Shah said.