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Minnesota Doctors plead, leave fireworks to the experts

June 23, 2022

The Fourth of July holiday is fast approaching and once again Minnesota’s physicians want to remind their fellow residents to leave the lighting of fireworks to the professionals. 

“We urge Minnesotans to play it safe and let the experts handle the fireworks this summer,” said MMA President Randy Rice, MD. “Every year, many Minnesotans are injured and wind up in the emergency department because of injuries caused by fireworks.” 

According to the latest statistics from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission an estimated 15,600 fireworks-related injuries were treated in emergency departments in 2020. Eighteen people died because of these injuries. This is a 50% increase in deaths and injuries between 2019 and 2020. 

Nearly 45% of the injuries were burns. Sixteen hundred people were hurt by firecrackers, and 900 were hurt by seemingly harmless sparklers. The parts of the body most often injured were hands and fingers (an estimated 30%); head, face, and ears (an estimated 22%); and eyes (an estimated 15%). 
 
About the Minnesota Medical Association 
The Minnesota Medical Association is a non-profit professional association representing physicians, residents and medical students. With more than 11,000 members, the MMA is dedicated to being the leading voice of medicine to make Minnesota the healthiest state and the best place to practice.    

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