AUBURN, Wash. — As people make plans to ring in the New Year, a UW study that found a link between eye injuries and firework access sparks an important point: If you're going to shoot off fireworks this weekend, do it as safely as possible.
The study highlighted several key points. It states that men made up a majority of patients injured by fireworks at 86 out of the 94 patients.
Many of those injured were children or young adults, with the average age at 25.
Just over half of the cases involved corneal abrasion while bleeding in the eye made up 32% of cases and corneal foreign bodies made up 15% of cases, according to the study.
"These are people who have long lives ahead of them and we hope they can have the best vision possible for the rest of their lives," said Assistant Professor Dr. Shu Feng of the young patients part of the study.
Dr. Feng said people shooting off fireworks at their homes are where researchers saw the most injuries.
The study from UW noted that, "although these results suggest that local firework bans may be associated with a small reduction in the odds of firework-related ocular trauma, additional studies are warranted to assess what actions might lead to greater reductions."
The National Safety Council recommends the following ways you can keep yourself if you plan to shoot off fireworks.
- Never allow young children to handle fireworks
- Older children should use them only under close adult supervision
- Never use fireworks while impaired by drugs or alcohol
- Anyone using fireworks or standing nearby should wear protective eyewear
- Never hold lighted fireworks in your hands
- Never light fireworks indoors
Other safety tips include only lighting one firework at a time, avoid attempting to re-light or handle a malfunctioning firework and keep a bucket of water nearby to extinguish fireworks as needed.