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TOY INJURY  Each year, more than 3 billion toys and games are sold in the United States. Although meant to bring joy and entertainment, toys are linked to all too many injuries. Children ages 4 and under are at especially high risk. While falls and choking account for the majority of toy-related deaths and injuries, children can suffer from strangulations, burns, drowning and poisoning while playing with toys. Choosing the right toy for the age of the child and proper use of toys can greatly reduce the incidence and severity of such injuries.  Who Is at Risk for Toy Injury Due to their natural desire to put everything in their mouths, young children under age 3 are at greater risk than older children from choking on toys. However, children ages 3 and older are more likely to choke on balloons than children under age 3.Males account for approximately sixty percent of all toy-related injuries.Health Care CostsIt is estimated that the total annual cost of toy-related injuries treated in hospital emergency rooms among children ages 4 and under is approximately $385 million.Prevention TipsCheck the Web site of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission for information on recent toy recalls.When selecting toys, consider the child’s age, interests and skill level, look for quality design and construction, and follow age and safety recommendations on labels.Ensure that toys are used in a safe environment. For example, riding toys should not be used near stairs, traffic or swimming pools.Supervise children at play. Play is even more valuable when adults become involved and interact with children rather than supervising from a distance.Teach children to put toys away safely after playing. Ensure that toys intended for younger children are stored separately from those for older children.Consider purchasing a small parts tester (or use the cardboard tube from a toilet paper roll) to determine whether small toys may present a choking hazard to children under age 3. Do not let small children play with anything that can fit into either a tester or a toilet paper tube.Inspect old and new toys regularly for damage and potential hazards. Make any necessary repairs immediately or discard damaged toys out of children’s reach.Young children should never play with toys with strings, straps or cords longer than 7 inches, which could strangle them.Use mylar balloons instead of latex balloons. Children can choke or suffocate on uninflated or broken balloons. If you must use latex balloons, store them out of reach of children, do not allow children to inflate them, and deflate and discard balloons and balloon pieces after use.Electrical toys are a potential burn hazard. Small children should not use toys with electrical plugs.Toys and Lead ExposureThrough normal hand-to-mouth activity, children may be exposed to lead from toys that have been made in other countries and imported into the country, or from antique toys and collectibles passed down through generations. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) issues recalls of toys that could potentially expose children to lead. Although millions of toys are being recalled because of dangerous lead paint and magnets, keep in mind that these recalls represent a small fraction of the overall number of toys sold in the United States every year. Lead paint was banned for use in house paint, on products marketed to children, and dishes or cookware in the United States in 1978; however, it is still widely used in other countries and therefore can be found in imported toys. Lead may also be used in plastic toys to stabilize the plastic molecules from heat. The use of lead in plastics has not been banned. Lead is not visible and has no smell. The only way to test a toy for lead is through a certified laboratory. Do-it-yourself kits are available. However these kits do not indicate how much lead is present and their reliability at detecting low levels of lead has not been determined Statistics: Deaths and InjuriesEighteen toy-related deaths occurred in 2007 involving children under the age of 15. The toys involved in these fatal incidents were:
In 2007 there were an estimated 232,900 toy-related injuries treated in U.S. hospital emergency departments. These injuries were related to, but not necessarily caused by toys.Seventy-three percent (170,100) of the injuries for 2007 were to children under 15 years of age and 34 percent (80,200) were to children under five. Overall, males were involved in more than 58% percent of the toy-related injury incidents.Forty-five percent of the total estimated emergency department treated injuries (103,700) occurred to the head and face area, which includes head, face, eyeball, mouth and ear. Arms, from shoulder to finger, accounted for 25 percent of the injuries (57,800), while the leg and foot area accounted for 18 percent (42,700). The remaining 12 percent of the injuries (28,700) were distributed across other body parts or the body part was not reported. The individual body parts having the most estimated emergency department treated injuries overall were the face (45,900), and the head (28,900). Among the most frequent diagnoses, 27 percent of the total estimated emergency department injuries were diagnosed to be lacerations, 20 percent were contusions and abrasions. Fractures and sprains/strains each accounted for 13 percent of the injuries. The remaining 27 percent of the injuries were characterized by a host of other diagnoses such as foreign body, internal injury, ingestion, dislocation, concussion, and puncture injuries, among others.In 2007, riding toys (including non-motorized scooters) continued to be associated with more emergency department treated injuries among all ages (59,100 or 25 percent) than any other category of toy. Non-motorized scooters were associated with 49,800 of the riding toy-related injuries. The toy category with the next highest number of injuries (11,000) was flying toys.Safe Kids USA - Toy Safety: http://sk.convio.net/site/PageNavigator/Campaigns/ToySafety/campaignToySafety
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