Surgeons warning on children’s playground equipment dangers

Looking into injuries children sustain when using playground equipment, the latest edition of the ANZ Journal of Surgery has highlighted the severe injuries that youngsters can suffer if monkey-bars are not used appropriately.

A letter to the editor in the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS) publication shows that more than half of monkey-bar related injuries recorded in an audit of 211 fracture admissions to a Melbourne hospital were caused from children either attempting to skip a rung or from sitting or standing on top of a monkey bar and falling.

Monkey-bar injuries accounted for almost one-fifth of the paediatric fracture admissions, with more than half of those suffering a severe injury.

Co-author of the letter and orthopaedic trainee Dr Sina Babazadeh said that the study included a retrospective audit of all fractures requiring admission over a 24-month period, with all patients attending primary school or younger, from ages one to 13.

Dr Babazedeh stated “injuries like these can result in significant stress to a child, parent and the health system, and can potentially have long standing repercussions.

“Monkey-bar and play equipment falls can result in injuries that are significantly more likely to require a trip to the operating theatre.

“Parents and schools should be aware of the dangers when children attempt to skip rungs or use the equipment inappropriately, however, understandably it is difficult to stop them doing so.”

The ANZ Journal of Surgery, published by Wiley-Blackwell, is the pre-eminent surgical journal published in Australia, New Zealand and the South-East Asian region for the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons. The Journal is dedicated to the promotion of outstanding surgical practice, and research of contemporary and international interest.

The Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS) is the leading advocate for surgical standards, professionalism and surgical education in Australia and New Zealand.

Click here to view the ANZ Journal of Surgery.

Image used for illustrative purposes only.

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