Falling TVs send a child to the ER every 30 minutes Enormous flat-screens are in millions of homes, but come with a risk that many parents may not realize: children can be seriously hurt in a TV tip-over. The number of kids injured by a TV falling on them grew 125 percent between 1990 and 2011, according to a new study of emergency room records that calls for greater prevention efforts. Overall, more than 17,000 children under age 18 were treated each year for various TV-related injuries in ERs across the United States – that’s one child every half hour – during that time period, the study released Monday in the journal Pediatrics found. Between 2000 and 2011, 215 children died from injuries caused by a falling TV. “This is a serious problem,” said the study’s senior author, Dr. Gary Smith, a pediatrician at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, told NBC News. “A child’s dying once every three weeks from a TV tip-over. The numbers are going up. This is a call to action. These are 100 percent preventable injuries.” The rising number of injuries “dispels that myth that as flat-screens came onto the market, we would see a decline in TV tip-overs," Smith said. "We’re seeing the opposite.” The lighter, top-heavy design of flat-screens could actually make them easier for a child to pull over, the study found. The rate of injury from TV tip-overs increased 95 percent. Children under the age of 5 were the most at risk -- accounting for 64 percent of the injuries -- because young kids can’t get out of the way as quickly as older children, Smith said. Almost 61 percent of the injured children were boys. Other than falling TVs, children were also hurt by striking or hitting the TV. The head and neck were the most commonly injured body parts, Smith said, noting that injuries ranged from bruising to death. Other injuries included lacerations, fractures and sprains. Some injuries are minor, but, “I have seen kids with major traumatic brain injuries as a result of this,” said Smith, a pediatric emergency medicine physician. The study, he said, is a call for parents to secure their televisions and for a strengthening of stability standards for TVs. There are various products to make TVs safer – straps, Velcro, L braces and mounts for flat-screens. “The overriding recommendation is that all TVs, whether it’s a flat-screen or CRT, must be anchored to the wall to prevent tip-overs and if it’s on a piece of furniture, the furniture needs to be anchored to the wall as well,” Smith said. Parents are urged against putting the remote control or toys on top of the television or the furniture it sits on, so kids won’t try to climb up after them. “Everybody knows that after kids get to be 2 ½ years old, there’s nothing too high,” he said. “You have to look at it from the point of a child. Just grab it and pull, if it starts to tip over and is unstable, your kid’s going to do that, too.” Children under 5 are most at risk from TVs toppling over on them. All TVs, whether it’s a flat-screen or older model, should be anchored to the wall to prevent tip-overs, researchers urge. Tips from SafeKids.org on how to stabilize any TV in your home: Mount flat-screen TVs to the wall to prevent them from toppling off stands. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions to ensure that you have a secure fit. If you have a large, heavy, old-style cathode ray tube (CRT) TV, place it on a low, stable piece of furniture. Use brackets, braces or wall straps.
Posted on: Mon, 22 Jul 2013 16:56:56 +0000
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