Treadmill-induced Hand Injury in Children

Choi, Joong Ho; Lee, Jong Wook; Jang, Young Chul; Oh, Suk Joon; Choi, Young Woong

Abstract

Recently, the usage of an exercising treadmill has increased in Korean homes. Along with increasing utilization of these machines, injuries relating to the inadvertent usage of the machine have gradually increased for the last several years. The purpose of this study is to identify the feature of this type of injury, thereby to help prevent and to raise an awareness of the potential injury. 25 patients who had been admitted to Hangang Sacred Heart Hospital from January 2002 through March 2004 were investigated retrospectively. Age, sex, place of injury, the area and the extent of injury, treatment and prognosis were analyzed for each case. All injuries involved in the children with an average age of 3.5 years. This new type of injury was at least a deep second-degree burn of the friction-burn type in all cases. Most of them primarily involved hands. Inattention of the guardian was the main cause of such injuries. 68% of the cases needed an operation such as a split- thickness skin graft or a full-thickness skin graft. In this study, authors reached a conclusion that such injuries may be prevented by an education of the potential risks of using a treadmill and by developing additional safety devices.