On Independence Day, Think Fireworks Safety First

To prevent boys from being boys, Stout recommends that parents who buy fireworks securely lock away any leftovers -- or better yet use them all up.

"The worst injuries we see are people who have a bunch of firecrackers left over, and kids get into them," he said. "Anything can be combined together and cause a bottle to explode, or some other sort of explosion. Just use them up."

Hands are the part of the body most often injured by fireworks, followed by the eyes.

Approximately half of the estimated sparkler injuries involve hands and fingers, the same pattern as firecracker injuries, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission. About half the bottle rocket injuries involve the eyes, and almost 30 percent involve the head, face or ear.

While hands usually suffer burns, the eyes can be injured in one of three ways by fireworks, Stout said.

They can be burned, of course. But eyes also can be harmed merely by the concussion from a firework.

"When a firework explodes close to the eye, the shock wave causes damage," Stout said. "It can cause the lens to dislocate. You don't have anything go in the eye, but the percussive force causes damage."

Eyes also can be injured by penetrating debris from a fireworks explosion, or by a flying firework like a bottle rocket.

If you're a parent insistent on buying your own fireworks to set off, Stout urges you to at least put on some safety glasses. "I've had eye patients come to me whose vision was spared because they were wearing safety glasses," he said.

He recalled one case in which two brothers were standing near each other when a firework went off in their faces. One brother lost an eye. "The other brother, even though he sustained more of the blast, the glasses protected his eyes," Stout said. "He was fine."

Or, better yet, just go see the show at your local park.

"Clearly, the safest fireworks to watch are the biggest and most beautiful," Stout said. "You watch them from a distance, and they're just gorgeous."

More information

To learn more about hazards posed by fireworks, visit the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

SOURCES: Tim Stout, M.D., Ph.D., ophthalmologist, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland; Lorraine Carli, spokeswoman National Fire Protection Association, Quincy, Mass.; U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission