A new study revealed that over 70,000 children visit the emergency room due to issues with medical devices per year. In approximately 25% of cases, problems were related to contact lenses with issues such as infections and eye abrasions. Other issues include broken syringes while injecting medical prescriptions or illegal drugs, infections and problems with ear or diabetic tubes, and skin tears from gynecological pelvic exams. While the alarming, improving these statistics can come from better labeling and education for adolescent users of medical devices. In cases such as contact lens issues, infections can be causes by overextended wear or improper cleaning of lenses. Also important to consider is the increased prevalence of home care in leau of hospital care for children with chronic diseases such as diabetes or cancer.
Sources:
Yahoo! News
Pediatrics Journal
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