Children's Firework Safety
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FunTranscript
00:00Hey guys, Meltdown here at Children's Hospital in Michigan with Dr. Steve Kanazic.
00:08Thanks for taking the time to talk with us about fireworks safety.
00:10It's my pleasure.
00:11Now, of course, we've got a bunch of fireworks right here.
00:13And, I mean, these things are obviously, you know, for adults, but kids sometimes get into them.
00:18What should parents do if kids get involved in some sort of firework accident?
00:22Well, the first thing to do, of course, is prevention.
00:24And that requires that they not handle these fireworks unless they have appropriate adult supervision.
00:31So, the Troy Fire Department was nice enough to give us some demonstrations here today.
00:34And, of course, we saw the sparklers and we saw how much heat and how fast some of these devices can move.
00:39And we also saw how quickly garments would burst into flames.
00:43Recognizing that there are many fireworks injuries that are also associated with the fact that a lot of these become projectiles.
00:51And those home injuries that account for about a third of pediatric burn injuries are because something will explode and go flying and hit a child.
01:00Those also will require some care.
01:02The fire department did demonstrate one or two of those devices that is also a projectile.
01:08So, doctor, how does a parent know that a burn is more severe than they think and they might really have to come to Children's Hospital in Michigan?
01:14If the appearance of the burn right away looks more severe than a sunburn, then they should go seek care.
01:21Recognizing that one of the most critical features of burns is that they evolve over time based on destruction of the skin from the heat, they may not look nearly as severe right away.
01:33So, any injury that burns through the skin or looks more severe than an ordinary sunburn that they would treat at home with a nice moisturizing cream or a burn ointment at home, those are children who should be seen.
01:46Of course, associated with that are any vulnerable part of your body such as the eye, the mouth, the genitals, the palms of the hands, the soles of the feet.
01:57These are critical areas for burn healing that are different in children than they are in adults and require some specialized care.
02:04So, why should parents bring their kids here to Children's Hospital of Michigan?
02:07Well, Children's Hospital of Michigan is a designated burn center.
02:11That means that we have specialists in burn care.
02:14Part of that team is the pediatric emergency physicians that I am one of who handle most of the immediate care.
02:23We admitted 15 children last year with fireworks related injuries.
02:28Now, that reflects only the children who were so severely burned that they needed to go to our burn center for debridement, skin grafting, cleaning, more extensive care than what we render in the emergency department.
02:40But we see 9 to 12 kids in the emergency department who were seen and discharged to home care for every child who's admitted to the burn unit.
02:50So, the admitted children are only the tip of the iceberg.
02:54But those children are managed by some very, very specialized surgeons who are very adept at managing pediatric burns, which are substantially different than adult burns.
03:05And ours is really the only center in the area that does that.
03:08Now, some of these fireworks may be, you know, they may look innocent enough sparklers and whatnot, but they still burn at, you know, a thousand degrees or something.
03:15And so they can burn as well.
03:16They surely can.
03:17And in fact, most burn injuries to children are caused from sparklers.
03:21It's the number one cause, more than 50%.
03:24And the reason is, is that this is something that parents frequently will hand to a child thinking that their judgment is capable that they will not put it up against their clothing.
03:34They will not touch their face with it or their brother's eye.
03:37These are the kinds of injuries that we see from sparklers.
03:42They're instant burns.
03:43They, it takes only a very moment if you like the term hot second.
03:48This is the hot second approach that causes an immediate burn to the area.
03:53And they can be severe burns depending on where that burn is located.
03:57We have lots of fireworks displays in our community.
04:00We have big ones downtown that are sponsored by some great organizations.
04:04We have every community in our town, lots of ballparks.
04:08The ballpark in Utica, for example, in my own backyard has great fireworks every Friday night that are managed by professionals that can be enjoyed by the entire community.
04:17These are some places where people can go, experience the fireworks, the excitement, the noise.
04:25Go hear the Detroit Symphony, if that's what floats your boat out at Greenfield Village with the fireworks.
04:31There's lots of places where you can go and experience some great fireworks safely and have a great family entertaining holiday.
04:39Well, Dr. got to thank you so much for your time.
04:41Got to thank the Troy Fire Department and, of course, everybody here at Children's Hospital in Michigan.
04:45Be safe this 4th of July season and all throughout the summer.
04:48Thank you very much.
04:49I appreciate it.