Firecracker
injuries can cause serious and irreparable damage to vision. In India,
firecracker injuries are common during the festival of ‘Deepawali’ where traditionally;
firecrackers form an essential part of the celebrations.
Majority of
people who are involved in firecracker injuries are adolescent children, males
and commonly onlookers .Bombs followed by sparklers are most common cause of
injury. Rockets and bombs are associated with serious injury.
Not wearing
any protective eye wear is a very common mistake which we repent later.
Many of the
injuries are caused as a result of negligence of those igniting the
firecrackers. Some severe injuries are caused by malfunctioning of firecrackers.
In some cases, the attempt to reignite or recover a failed device was the cause
of injury.
Absence
of parental supervision, and failure to maintain safe distance from
firecrackers were contributory in some cases of injuries. The other major cause
of injury is the common practice of igniting firecrackers in the streets thus
exposing passers-by to injury.
If an eye injury from fireworks
occurs, remember:
- · Seek medical attention immediately.
- · Do not rub your eyes.
- · Do not rinse your eyes.
- · Do not apply pressure.
- · Do not remove any objects that are stuck in the eye.
- · Do not apply ointments or take any blood-thinning pain medications such as aspirin or ibuprofen.
