Riley Hospital urges community to prevent lawn mower injuries

05/19/2009

Annually, more than 9,000 children injured nationwide

INDIANAPOLIS - Lawn mowers are often associated with the scent of fresh cut grass and thoughts of a beautiful summer day, but few associate lawn mowers with facial injuries, amputations or even fatalities.

"Now that the grass has turned green, it's inevitable we'll see a child seriously harmed by mowing equipment, an injury that could have been prevented," said Tres Scherer, MD, medical director, Riley Hospital for Children Pediatric Trauma Center.

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, each year approximately 9,000 children under the age of 18 are injured by power lawn mowers nationwide; and every summer, Hoosiers are victims of these preventable injuries and deaths.

From 2003-2006, the most recent data available from the Indiana State Department of Health, 37 percent of all power lawn-mower related injuries in the state involved the hospitalization of children under the age of 15.

"Crippling injuries occur each year due to carelessness when operating lawn equipment," continued Dr. Scherer. "We can greatly reduce the number of injured children if adults would keep children off the lap of riding lawn mower operators and out of the yard when operating push and riding lawn mowers."

"Adults and children need to exercise caution and common sense when operating any type of machinery, especially lawn mowers. Good advice is to expect the unexpected and keep children under the age of 12 away from lawn mowers and the mowing area," added Dr. Scherer.

Riley Hospital for Children wants the public to be aware of the dangers of power lawn mowers and provide tips on lawn mower safety.

Types of lawn mower injuries

• Amputation of body parts (fingers, toes, arms or legs)
• Deep cuts, damaging skin, muscle and bone
• Fractures of hand, feet, arms or legs
• Head, facial and eye injuries
• Burns from hot mower parts

Lawn mower safety tips

• Never allow a child under the age of 12 to operate a push or riding lawn mower, or a tractor pulling a brush mower.
• Never allow a child to ride on the lap of driver, the seat, fender or housing of a riding mower or a tractor pulling a brush mower.
• Read the operator's manual.
• Never leave a power mower unattended while the engine is running.
• Protect against flying objects by keeping children more than 50 feet (15 meters) away from the operating mower.
• NEVER allow a child in the yard of a riding lawn mower, the unknown child in the yard becomes the back-over maimed child

CONTACT:
Margie Smith-Simmons
317.962.4085
msmithsi@clarian.org

About Riley Hospital for Children As one of the nation's leading pediatric hospitals and Indiana's first and only comprehensive hospital dedicated exclusively to the care of children, Riley Hospital for Children, a part of Clarian Health, has provided compassionate care, support and comfort to children and their families for 85 years. Each year, Riley Hospital and Riley Hospital at Clarian North serve over 215,000 inpatients and outpatients from across Indiana, the nation and the world. Riley Hospital's partnership with Clarian Health, and its strong affiliation with the Indiana University School of Medicine, makes it the only comprehensive clinical resource for Indiana's children and the premiere source for health-related information for their parents. From simple care associated with the health and wellness of children and less complex specialty care to the most critically-ill and medically complex cases, Riley Hospital for Children is a national leader. Clarian Health operates the Methodist Hospital, Indiana University Hospital and Riley Hospital for Children campuses as a single hospital under Indiana law. Visit Riley Hospital for Children for more information.