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Health and Wellness Magazine • 35 Call us today 303.575.0055 are you or a loved one in need of a doctor? We're here to help. a HealthoNE representative can answer your questions and help you find the right physician, close to home. Falls U.S. Fast Stat: Falls top the list of nonfatal injuries for children and teens, generating about 8,000 emergency visits a day (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). Inside Look: Windows are a prime hazard, particularly now, as the weather grows warmer, Darr says. "Often they are open in the summer with just a screen, but screens don't support the weight of a child." Balconies, decks, shopping carts and stairs are other main culprits. "And we see a lot of kids with injuries from playground equipment, especially the monkey bars and slides." Head injuries are often the most severe injury from falls, followed by internal injuries and broken bones. "I had a 3-year-old patient who had fallen from a slide. The child seemed fine and was talking and sitting up, but I noticed grunting, a sign of abdominal pain in kids." The result: a lacerated spleen. Top Tips: Install window guards and stops and keep furniture away from windows. Use low shopping-cart attachments for kids and safety belts. Use safety gates at top and bottom of stairways. poisonings U.S. Fast Stat: More than 300 children through age 19 are seen in an ER for poisoning each day, generally from household chemicals or drugs (CDC). Inside Look: Teens overdosing on highly accessible synthetic marijuana or today's potent doses of the real drug, particularly w h e n i n g e s t e d i n e d i b l e f o r m , i s becoming an increasingly common emergency event, Darr says. "Part of the problem is when they are eating it rather than smoking it, it can take longer to feel the effect. So they eat more and more." For her little patients, accidental ingestion of pot or other prescription drugs left accessible is also a problem. Generally, these smaller accidental ingestions of marijuana cause sleepiness and vomiting. But overdosing with teens that have ingested large quantities can result in coma and seizures. Top Tips: Store drugs and household products out of sight and reach of children. Teach children to ask before they eat something. Post the poison-control number (800-222-1222) near the phone. ingestions U.S. Fast Stat: Emergency cases of children ingesting magnets increased five-fold between 2002 and 2011 (Annals of Emergency Medicine). Inside Look: Suffocation has always been a chief concern for infants and toddlers, who tend to put everything in their mouths. Now magnetic toys and smaller batteries (such as the tiny round ones in remotes and watches) are adding new threats. "Swallowed pennies and dimes generally just pass through the child," Darr says. But batteries can burn holes in the esophagus or intestine. "And with those tiny, round toy magnets, if two or more are swallowed, they can end up getting stuck to each other on either side of a fold of intestine, eventually cutting off blood supply and creating a hole." Both scenarios are potentially deadly emergencies requiring surgery. Top Tips: Learn the Heimlich maneuver. Do not induce vomiting. Keep battery- c o n t r o l l e d d e v i c e s o u t o f r e a c h o f children or place duct tape over battery compartment. Seek immediate care if you suspect magnet/battery ingestion. A c c i d e n t s k i l l m o r e c h i l d r e n e v e r y y e a r t h a n any other cause — and most of the injuries are preventable. In hopes of reducing those numbers, Darr and Tracey Holmberg, HealthONE's pediatric injury prevention coordinator, offer a snapshot of some top childhood traumas below. Darr provides an "Inside Look," while Holmberg gives prevention "Top Tips." Tracey Holmberg Dr. Christine Darr