Don’t Let Injuries and Illness Spoil Summer Fun
By Craig Gronczewski, M.D.
Summertime is typically a fun time for families, often filled with outdoor activities from morning until night. But did you know that summertime is also a time when emergency room visits spike?
Whether you are lounging on the beach, gathering around the campfire or simply enjoying your own backyard this summer, take precautions to avoid illness and injury, and be sure to know when to get medical help.
- Don’t get burned. Sunburn is not only painful, but it also can increase your risk for skin cancer. Protect yourself from sunburn by using a sunscreen containing an SPF of 15 or higher. When possible, cover up with clothing to protect exposed skin and wear a hat with a wide brim to shade your face, head, ears and neck.
Often sunburn can be treated at home with cool, damp compresses and Ibuprofen to relieve pain. However, a blistering sunburn that covers more than 15 percent of your body may require medical attention.
- Stay cool. Heat-related illnesses claim the lives of hundreds of people in the United States each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). To prevent heat-related illnesses, drink plenty of water or other non-alcoholic beverages, wear lightweight loose-fitting clothing that is light in color, reduce strenuous activities or do them during cooler parts of the day and stay indoors with air conditioning, if possible, during the hottest parts of the day.
Heat stroke is the most serious heat-related illness and occurs when the body is unable to control its temperature. Warning signs of heat stroke may vary, but include a body temperature over 103 degrees; red, hot and dry skin (no sweating); rapid, strong pulse; throbbing headache; dizziness, nausea; confusion, and unconsciousness.
Heat stroke is a medical emergency. If you suspect someone has heat stroke, call 9-1-1. Get the person to a shady area and cool them down rapidly whether by spraying with cool water from a garden hose, sponging them with cool water, or placing them in a cool shower or a tub of cool water.
- Leave fireworks to the pros. On average 230 people go to the emergency room every day with fireworks-related injuries– most commonly burns and eye injuries– in the month around the July 4th holiday, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission. Moreover, most injuries are associated with easy-to-buy firecrackers, sparklers and bottle rockets.
The best way to avoid injuries and trip to the emergency room is to leave fireworks of any kind to the professionals. Never allow children to play with fireworks.
- Practice water safety. Summer and swimming go together like camping and S’mores. But water-related activities can be dangerous if the right precautions aren’t followed. In fact, every day about 10 people die from unintentional drowning and more than half of near drowning victims treated in emergency departments require further hospitalization, according to the CDC. Further, about one in five people who die from drowning are children 14 and younger.
Stay safe in the water by learning how to swim and never swimming alone. Wear a lifejacket and avoid alcoholic beverages while boating. Always watch children in and around water, and if you have a swimming pool at your home, the CDC recommends installing a four-sided isolation pool fence.
- Guard against bites and stings. People aren’t the only ones who enjoy warm summer weather. Insects do, too. Insect bites normally don’t require emergency care, but bugs like mosquitos and ticks can carry dangerous diseases, which makes it important to guard against them.
The CDC recommends using EPA-registered insect repellents that contain at least 20 percent DEET for protection against mosquitoes, ticks and other bugs. Additionally, to prevent ticks, stay out of tall grass, brush or heavily wooded areas and walk in the center of hiking trails. Be sure to check yourself for ticks after being outdoors. To safely remove a tick, use tweezers and pull straight up. Do not twist or jerk, as this can cause the mouthparts of the tick to break off and remain in the skin.
People with a history of severe allergic reactions to bee stings or other insect bites, should carry an EpiPen. Symptoms of a severe allergic reaction include: trouble breathing; hives that appear as a red, itchy rash and spread to areas beyond the sting; swelling of the face, throat, or mouth tissue; wheezing or trouble swallowing; restlessness and anxiety; rapid pulse and dizziness or a sharp drop in blood pressure. Seek emergency care if these symptoms occur.
- Remember, “Leaves of three, let it be.” Poison ivy and poison are oak are common in wooded areas as well as backyards and gardens. Learn how to identify and avoid contact with these and other dangerous plants, which can cause reactions ranging from a mild itchy skin rash to painful blisters. In rare instances, a severe allergic reaction may occur and require emergency treatment. Never burn poison ivy, poison oak or poison sumac. The smoke can carry the plant oils into your lungs and cause pain, swelling and difficulty breathing.
If you or a loved one experiences a medical emergency, call 9-1-1 or head to the nearest emergency room.
The Center for Emergency Care at University Medical Center of Princeton sees 50,000 patients each year, including 8,000 children. The Center offers a designated pediatric emergency area where pediatricians from The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia are on site 24/7 to consult on emergency cases involving infants, children and adolescents. The Center also offers a Senior Care emergency unit designed especially for older adults.
To find a physician with Princeton HealthCare System, call (888) 742-7496 or visit www.princetonhcs.org.
Craig A. Gronczewski, M.D., is board certified in emergency medicine and is the Chairman of the Department of Emergency Medicine at University Medical Center of Princeton.