CRACKERS BAN NOT EFFECTIVE IN DELHI DESPITE SUPREME COURT BAN ,SIR GANGA RAM HOSPITAL REPORTS 15 CASES OF BURN INJURIES

 New Delhi :Looks like cracker ban did not have a desired effect among delhites . The casualty at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital was kept busy during the night . According to sources , SGRH received 15 cases of burn injuries during the night . 10 were adults and 5 children . Two patients with severe burn injuries have been operated and rest discharged . 4 patients with breathing difficulty also came to casualty.

This was a retrospective descriptive study published recently on 20^th September 2017 in the Indian Journal  of  Child Health on 180 children of unintentional injuries  who visited  paediatric emergency department of Sir Ganga Ram Hospital  during festive months of September to October 2011 (Diwali was on 26^th October 2011) , to  determine the frequency and nature of unintentional injuries   .  Unintentional injuries were defined as injuries occurred due to Road Traffic Accident, falls, burns, animal bites, and drowning.

·         The injuries were more common in 1-5 year age group .

·         Male children were at high risk for unintentional injuries.

·         Children with injury over the head and face required hospitalization often than children with injuries over other body parts.

·         There were three main types of injuries  – trauma (89.3%), burns (5%), and dog bites (5%).

·         Fall from the height (49.4%) was the most common mechanism in children who presented with history of trauma. About 50% of the injuries were sustained over the head and face region.

According to Dr Suresh Gupta , Author & Senior Consultant , Department of Pediatric Emergency , Sir Ganga Ram Hospital , “ In our study we observed that head and face were the most common body areas to be injured (46.6%), and this can be explained as head and face contributes to the larger proportion of body surface area in children. The most common mechanism of injuries was falls (54.7%), and most common place of injury occurrence was at home .”

 According to Dr Yachana Chaudhary , Author of the study , Department of Community Medicine ,  Gandhi Medical College Bhopal ,  “ Based on the intent of injuries, injuries can be divided into intentional and unintentional. Intentional injuries include child abuse and violence against children whereas unintentional injuries include falls, Road Traffic Accidents , drowning, poisoning, and burns. In developed countries, injuries are the most common cause of childhood morbidity and mortality. As per the World Health Organization report, injuries are the 6th leading cause of childhood mortality throughout the world; however, in India, it is the 5th leading cause of under-five childhood mortality .

Dr Gupta added that “ It is a common observation that in India  during festival seasons such as Makar Sankranti and Holi, the incidence of falls from roof increases because of unsupervised kite flying, and similarly in Diwali, the incidence of burns increases significantly because of fire crackers . Special attention should be paid to children during festival time. “

Study link below: