Serious Injury Toll in the Supposed Safest of Places Now Tops 12 Million: What You Need to Know to Be Safe
by www.SixWise.com
A major public health concern is occurring in a place you'd
least expect it: our homes. Between 1992 and 1999, an average
of 18,048 people died each year from unintentional home injuries,
according to research from the University of North Carolina
(UNC) Injury Prevention Research Center.
"In addition, for 1998 alone, more than 12 million nonfatal
unintentional injuries that required medical attention occurred
at home," said Dr. Carol W. Runyan, director of the center
and professor of health behavior and health education and
pediatrics at UNC schools of public health and medicine.
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In one year, 12 million people needed medical attention
because they were accidentally injured at home.
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The leading causes of accidental deaths in the home?
Certain injuries were more likely to occur depending on a
person's age, Runyan pointed out:
"Rates of fall deaths were highest for older adults,
poisoning deaths were highest among middle-aged adults,
while fire and burn death rates were highest among children
and older adults. Suffocation, inhalation and drowning deaths
also are serious problems, especially for infants and toddlers.
For nonfatal injuries, the risks are greatest for the youngest
and oldest age groups."
Injuries From Falls Prevalent
Falls are the second most common cause of death from unintentional
injury (after motor vehicle crashes). And, more people rush
to U.S. emergency rooms for injuries related to falling than
from any other cause.
Everyone is at risk from falls, but both the elderly and
children are particularly susceptible:
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According to the American Academy of Family Physicians,
they're the primary cause of accidental death in people
over the age of 65.
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Falls are the cause of 70 percent of accidental deaths
in people aged 75 years and older.
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Children aged 14 and younger make up one-third of emergency
room visits for falls
"Clearly, there is ample opportunity to increase the
use of protective devices and limit the presence of fall hazards
in many U.S. homes," Runyan says.
Runyan and colleagues surveyed 1,003 households across the
nation as part of their larger study. While 7 percent of the
households reported that someone had fallen (in or around
their home) and required medical attention within the last
year:
" Only one-third of homes with a child age 6 or younger
and windows on upper stories reported having window guards
or locks (to keep children from falling out).
(You can easily use an inexpensive window safeguard like
the Window
Wedge to control the height or width of your window openings.
This lets fresh air in but keeps young children safe.)
" One-third of homes with stairs had at least one set
with no handrail or banister.
To prevent falls in your home, try these simple tips:
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Pick up clutter and remove tripping hazards like throw
rugs and extension
cords.
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Block off stairways, windows or other dangerous areas
using The
Gateway® To Go. This is no ordinary gate: It uses
a patented, pressure mount system rated #1 by a leading
consumer reporting organization to keep infants, the elderly
or pets safely away from accident-prone areas.
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Put non-slip mats in your bathtub and on shower floors.
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Tack carpet corners and edges securely to the floor.
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Install handrails on both sides of your stairways, and
grab bars next to your toilet and in your bathtub/shower.
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Use corner guards to prevent serious head traumas that
can occur from falling against sharp corners of furniture.
You can get a 4-pack
of Super Soft Gel Corner Protectors for just $2.99,
and they're simple to install.
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Make sure you have adequate lighting throughout your
home, especially at night.
Poisoning
According to the National Academy of Poison Control Centers,
92 percent of all poison exposures occur in the home, and
52 percent of poison exposures occur in children under the
age of 6. As we wrote in a past article, the
most common poisons to watch out for include:
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Cosmetics and personal care products
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Cleaning substances
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Pain medicine and fever reducers
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Coins and thermometers
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Plants
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Diaper care, acne preparations, antiseptics
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Cough and cold preparations
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Pesticides
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Vitamins
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Gastrointestinal preparations
Burn Injuries
Burn injuries leave 60,000 people hospitalized each year
in the United States, and over 5,000 people die from burn-related
injuries, according to Roy Alson, MD, PhD, associate professor
at the Department of Emergency Medicine, Wake Forest University
School of Medicine.
The good news is that about 75 percent of all burns are preventable
(as is the case with many home injuries), says eMedicine's
Burn Center, particularly if you're aware of the top causes
of burns that exist in your home. These include:
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Barbecue grills (The
HearthGate™ barbecue and fireplace protection gate
is an excellent solution: It keeps kids (and pets) away
from the grill and out of harm's way. It's also useful
for the fireplace.)
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Clothes irons
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Curling irons
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Fireplaces
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Radiators
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Ovens
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Hot pots on the stove, coffee cups, steam from microwaved
foods
A Call for Action
Many appliances, areas and tools in our homes that seem harmless
can easily cause injury. Case in point, a study in the February
issue of the journal Pediatrics found that toddlers are increasingly
being harmed by another home object: the paper shredder.
"It's a dangerous piece of machinery and leaving it
in the home unattended and accessible to young children could
result in a serious hand injury," said George Foltin,
MD, associate professor of pediatrics and emergency medicine
at New York University School of Medicine and director of
the Pediatric Emergency Department at Bellevue Hospital Center.
"If you have one, it needs to be unplugged and out of
children's reach."
Accidents will happen, but safeguarding your home against
every foreseeable risk will go a long way toward protecting
your family. Meanwhile, researchers are calling for more attention
to the issue of home-based injuries from government and private
organizations.
"At a time when so much attention is focused on homeland
security, it is ironic that we can experience this magnitude
of trauma in the home every year and have it go virtually
unnoticed," Runyan said. "Federal and state government,
as well as private groups, should support more work on this
issue."
Recommended Reading
The
Top 6 Accidents-Waiting-to-Happen in Your Home
How
Not to Lose Your Hand, Fingers or Toes: The Top 9 Most Common
Mistakes People Make When Mowing their Lawn
Sources
Science
Daily: Injury Toll in U.S. Homes Tops 12 Million Yearly
Science
Daily: Homes Need More Protection Against Falls
Science
Daily: Home Paper Shredders Pose Serious Injury Risk to Toddlers