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Bouncing Your Way to Injury?

| Jan 8, 2013 | General Interest

Inflatable bounce houses are becoming more and more popular at children’s birthday parties and other types of events such as amusement parks and fairs.  A recent study in the journal Pediatrics discussed the increasing rate of injuries associated with these bounce houses.  In the US, thirty children a day, or about one in every 45 minutes of use,  are treated in emergency rooms for broken bones, cuts and concussions from accidents occurring in bounce houses. There have even been a number of deaths reported.

The amount of bounce house injuries has doubled since 2008 to nearly 11,000 per year.   Most injuries are caused by children falling inside or out of the inflated houses or from collisions with other bouncing children.  Injuries have also been reported when the bounce houses collapsed or were lifted or knocked over by high winds.

Read the entire Pediatrics article here:   Pediatric Inflatable Bouncer-Related Injuries in the United States, 1990-2010

Of the reported injuries, more than 1/3 were children aged 5 or younger.  The US Consumer Product Safety Commission recommends against letting children younger than 6 use full-size trampolines and is considering such a recommendation for even smaller, home-use bounce houses.

As a parent, what can you do to avoid injury to your child?  Strongly weigh the risk of having your child under age 6 use the bounce house. Don’t let younger children bounce with older, heavier children or adults.  Make sure the bounce house is not overloaded with too many children and has mats around the entrance or anywhere else a child could fall.  Make sure kids aren’t doing flips or purposely colliding with each other.  Most importantly, observe the level of supervision to assure safe use, make sure that the house is safely and firmly anchored to the ground and that the blower stays plugged in to prevent collapse.

For more information visit: the Child Injury Prevention Alliance and the United States Consumer Production Safety Commission.

If you or a loved one have been injured while inside an inflatable bounce house, seek medical attention immediately for evaluation.  Our attorneys at the Brandi Law Firm have extensive experience handling product defect injury cases.  Contact us for a free consultation if you believe you or a loved one has been injured by an inflatable bounce house.

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