HEALTHY FAMILY
Emergency Room
Injuries and How to
Prevent Them
BY ELEANOR LINAFELT
Parents need to watch for certain signs after
an accident that signal they should take their
child to the emergency room.

“If it’s a cut or a laceration—not just a
scrape—those typically have to go to an ER
or an urgent care center,” Taylor says. “If it’s a
small laceration that might need a few stitches,
or a staple or two, most urgent care centers can
do that, and all emergency rooms can do that.

If it’s a larger cut or laceration, definitely an
emergency room.”
If a child falls on an outstretched arm and
is experiencing swelling, an ER professional
needs to evaluate this injury. “Any type of
injury on an outstretched arm where a kid
is in a lot of pain and they’re swelling in the
elbow especially needs to be evaluated pretty
quickly or else there can be nerve damage,”
Taylor says. “Any kind of injury where there
is pain and swelling in a joint or extremity or
ribs should be evaluated in an ER to make sure
there’s no fracture.”
G DEMAERRE/ISTOCK/GETTY IMAGES PLUS
etting hurt is a part of childhood,
but it’s essential to prevent serious
injuries in children. Parents can take
several steps—in the home, on the playground
and in the car—to try to avoid a trip to the
emergency room.

But if your child gets seriously hurt, it’s
crucial to know when a trip to the ER is
necessary to get the care needed.

Accidents According to Dan Taylor, medical director
of St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children
outpatient clinic and associate professor of
pediatrics for Drexel College of Medicine in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the most common
injuries in children occur because of accidents
such as falls or bike crashes.

“Those are typically either broken
bones or cuts, which we call lacerations or
sprains,” he says.

Winter injuries
In the home
During the winter, injuries in the home are
more common since families spend more time
inside. The American Academy of Pediatrics
offers a home safety checklist that Taylor
recommends families review.

“It includes things like stair gates and having
cribs that have sides that are the right height so
kids can’t crawl out of cribs and fall down,” he
says. “Knowing the development milestones of
kids is really important.”
Burns Scalding burns are common for children
during the winter.

“Whether that’s pulling down mom or dad’s
coffee from the table, or going to grandma or
grandpa’s house and having the kettle on (the
stove), scalding burns are deep, and they’re
serious,” Galler says. “You want to be really
cautious about placement of things, especially
when you have family visiting.”
Families should also be careful if they light
Motor vehicle accidents
More serious injuries can occur from motor fires in the fireplace or in outdoor fire pits.

vehicle accidents, according to Marjorie Galler, “Make sure you’re thinking about having a
an emergency department pediatrician at safe fire grate and constant supervision,”
MedStar Georgetown University Hospital she says.

and assistant professor of clinical pediatrics
and emergency medicine at Georgetown Always a balance
University School of Medicine.

While parents should allow their kids freedom
“While most of the injuries I see are not to play, they also need to be vigilant about the
life-threatening, certainly the ones related to potential for serious injury.

motor vehicle accidents can be,” she says.

“That delicate balance is something that
Prevention is key in avoiding life-threatening all parents have to struggle with a little bit,”
injuries from car crashes.

Taylor says. “Most kids are resilient and can
“You want to have a really good infant bounce back from injuries, but it’s important
car seat. You want to make sure people to ensure that there’s no chance for them to
are transitioning out of the infant car seat have a major life-threatening injury.”
into an appropriate toddler preschool-age
But when serious injuries occur, emergency
car seat when they hit that weight limit,” room pediatricians are available to address
Galler says. Additionally, she notes that “the them. “You can always remember we’re
American Academy of Pediatrics is pushing here 24/7,” Galler says. “Every emergency
for people to keep children as rear-facing for department is prepared to care for your child
as long as possible.”
while in need.” n
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