Hidden Dangers On Your Local Playground
Dr. Carey Clark with Azalea
Orthopedics says there are
some dangers on every playground
that many parents don't think
about.
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"The
monkey
bars are
the biggest
problem.
The kids
are very
small and
a lot of
times,
they're
swinging
from bar
to bar,
and they
try to
reach that
last bar,
and they
can't quite
get it. They're
swinging
up in the
air, and
they can't
quite get
it, and
they fall
on their
wrist and break
their wrist,
or they
break their
elbow," says
Clark.
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That's what happened
to 6-year-old Alex
Flora.
"I fell
off the monkey bars
cause they were really
slippery. I felt
like it (my wrist)
was broken. It
feels like something
is really, really sore," says
Alex.
She broke through
her growth plate and
was supposed to simply
get a cast, but a new
set of x-rays showed
her bone was moving.
The doctor gave her
parents two options.
"Option number
one; leave it just
the way it is. What's
going to happen? She
doesn't have surgery. She
gets put in a cast. She
might do just fine,
but she might not. Another
option is take her
back to the operating
room," says Clark.
If not treated properly,
Alex could have problems
with her bone development,
so her parents opted
for surgery.
Walter Flora says, "As
young as she is and
with it being a growth
plate, I want
to make sure that it
grows back the best
that it can," says
Walter.
Despite the broken
bone, Alex says she'll
head straight back
to the monkey bars
as soon as she's better,
but says she'll probably
be more careful the
next time.
Doctors suggest putting
smaller children on
lower monkey bars so
they don't have as
far to fall. They
also suggest spotting
small children until
they are old enough
to make it safely across.
This story
from http://www.Kltv.com/Global/story.asp?s=6419998 |
