Emergency Room Specialist Shares Advice for Avoiding ER Visits During the Holidays
Merck Manuals Author Identifies Common Holiday Hazards
KENILWORTH, N.J., Dec. 7, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The holidays may be the most wonderful time of the year, but with thousands of families forced to interrupt their merriment annually for trips to the emergency room, the season can also be marked by clear and present health dangers. To help families celebrate safely this season, Dr. Amy Kaji, MD, PhD and Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, has identified five of the most common holiday hazards and tips to avoid them on MerckManuals.com.
Some of the advice Dr. Kaji outlined in her article includes:
1. Overindulgence
Thanksgiving is the unofficial kick-off to a month-long marathon of celebrating that includes bigger meals, more drinking and generally more overindulgence than usual. For those with existing health conditions like diabetes, limiting the intake of sugary holiday treats is a key step to avoiding a trip to the ER. People with heart conditions should be especially careful about the amount of salt they eat, as the number of people admitted to the hospital for heart failure increases in the days right after major holidays.
Overdoing it on the alcohol can have its own set of serious consequences, including falls, car crashes and other injuries. In addition, drinking too much alcohol can cause a temporary irregular heartbeat, even in people who don't have any known heart problems. This occurs so often around the holidays that doctors refer to it as holiday heart syndrome.
2. Depression
Holidays can be a painful reminder of lost loved ones and difficult times. This increase in depression, often dubbed the holiday blues, can result in ER visits for attempted suicide, substance abuse, and panic attacks. Some people might feel better if they accept fewer invitations and limit themselves to gatherings with select, supportive friends and family. Continue the stress relievers that you know work for you (e.g., exercise, journal writing, talking to friends), and allow yourself to be selective of the number of events you attend.
3. Exhaustion
With long travel days, weeknight parties and endless shopping, the holidays are a recipe for exhaustion. But don't be too quick to chalk up important physical symptoms such as chest pain, shortness of breath, irregular heartbeat, or abdominal pain to exhaustion. These symptoms can be warning signs of dangerous conditions for which you should see a doctor.
Marathon trips to the mall pose another danger. Standing still in long lines after skipping breakfast or not getting enough to drink can easily cause fainting. Get enough rest and stay hydrated. It's important to schedule in meals and rest periods if you plan on a long day of shopping, and make sure maintaining a regular sleep schedule is a priority.
4. Falls
Slips, trips, and falls in crowded aisles and icy parking lots are a common source of ER visits. Falls from ladders while hanging lights or topping the tree are also common, especially among older individuals. In fact, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, every year holiday decorating causes about 15,000 injuries that result in ER visits. Always have a spotter when hanging lights in hard-to-reach places, and avoid drinking alcohol before decking the halls.
New holiday toys can also injure people when learning how to use them. Last year at least 70 kids went to the hospital thanks to falls and collisions from the popular new hoverboard toys. Read and follow safety labels on product packaging and wear protective gear when appropriate to avoid injuries.
5. Cuts
The pesky packaging that can only be opened with a pair of garden shears and an engineering degree causes many cuts that require a trip to the ER. Same goes for lacerations in the kitchen from carving the turkey or dicing sweet potatoes. Think twice and cut once!
When is the ER necessary?
What holiday mishaps and symptoms warrant a trip to the ER? It's not always easy to tell, and in fact 71 percent of ER docs say they treat patients every day who first went to urgent care and were then told they needed to go to the ER. Here's a good rule of thumb: For minor cold symptoms, stay home. For cuts, strains, and sprains, go to urgent care. If it's more serious, head for the hospital—particularly for chest discomfort, trouble breathing, neurologic symptoms (for example, dizziness, fainting, or weakness), new severe pain anywhere, and anything that causes great concern.
About The Merck Manuals
First published in 1899 as a small reference book for physicians and pharmacists, The Merck Manual grew in size and scope to become one of the world's most widely used comprehensive medical resources for professionals and consumers. As The Manual evolved, it continually expanded the reach and depth of its offerings to reflect the mission of providing the best medical information to a wide cross-section of users, including medical professionals and students, veterinarians and veterinary students, and consumers. In 2015, The Merck Manual kicked off Global Medical Knowledge 2020, a program to make the best current medical information accessible by up to three billion professionals and patients around the world by 2020. For access to thousands of medical topics with images, videos and a constantly expanding set of resources, visit MerckManuals.com and connect with us on social media:
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About Merck
For 125 years, Merck has been a global health care leader working to help the world be well. Merck is known as MSD outside the United States and Canada. Through our prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, and animal health products, we work with customers and operate in more than 140 countries to deliver innovative health solutions. We also demonstrate our commitment to increasing access to health care through far-reaching policies, programs and partnerships. For more information, visit www.merck.com and connect with us on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn.
SOURCE MerckManuals.com
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