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Fireworks
Safety
Prevent Blindness
America warns that there is no safe way for nonprofessionals to
use fireworks. It is only safe to enjoy the splendor and excitement
of fireworks at a professional display.
According
to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, fireworks accounted
for approximately 9,500 injuries treated in U.S. hospital emergency
rooms in the year 2001. Nearly 17 percent were eye-related. These
figures do not include those treated in non-emergency room settings
or those left untreated.
While
most injuries occur with legal fireworks, some states are debating
legalizing an even broader range of fireworks. Heavy lobbying by
the fireworks industry, promising more tax revenue through fireworks
sales, may result in an increase in fireworks-related injuries.
Believe it or not - bystanders are injured more often than the people
who fire off the fireworks.
Fireworks
statistics show:
- the
highest injury estimates were for firecrackers (26%), rockets
(21%) and sparklers (11%).
- Almost
half (47%) of the injuries were to children under age 15.
- Sparklers
can heat up to 1800 degrees Fahrenheit, hot enough to melt gold.
- Parts
of the body most often injured are the hands (32%), eyes (28%)
and head/face (16%).
- Data
from the United States Eye Injury Registry shows that bystanders
are more often injured by fireworks than operators themselves.
- There
were four deaths from fireworks in 2001.
If
an accident does occur, what can you do right away to minimize the
damage to the eye? These six steps can help save your child's sight.
- Do
not rub the eye. Rubbing the eye may increase bleeding or make
the injury worse.
- Do
not attempt to rinse out the eye. This can be even more damaging
than rubbing.
- Do
not apply pressure to the eye itself. Holding or taping a foam
cup or the bottom of a juice carton to the eye are just two tips.
Protecting the eye from further contact with any item, including
the child's hand, is the goal.
- Do
not stop for medicine! Over-the-counter pain relievers will not
do much to relieve pain. Aspirin (should never be given to children)
and ibuprofen can thin the blood, increasing bleeding. Take
the child to the emergency room at once - this is more important
than stopping for a pain reliever.
- Do
not apply ointment. Ointment, which may not be sterile, makes
the area around the eye slippery and harder for the doctor to
examine.
- Do
not let your child play with fireworks, even if his/her friends
are setting them off. Sparklers burn at 1800 degrees Farenheit,
and bottle rockets can stray off course or throw shrapnel when
they explode.
For more information
about fireworks safety, visit www.preventblindness.org
If you need an
eye M.D., visit the Dean A. McGee Eye Institute website at www.dmei.org
or call (405) 271-6363.
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