Cap gun burns in children.
OBJECTIVE
To document the frequency of cap gun burns in children and identify strategies for prevention of this mechanism of injury.


METHODS
Retrospective case note review of children under 16 years of age treated at The Children's Hospital at Westmead between January 1999 and December 2004 with burns secondary to toy cap guns.


RESULTS
Five boys were treated over the 5-year study period. None was supervised at the time of injury and in three cases the caps appeared to explode with minimal handling. All burn wounds healed without operative intervention and only one child suffered permanent sequelae from the burn injury.


CONCLUSIONS
Cap gun burns appear a rare mechanism of burn injury not previously reported. Recently produced caps may be more susceptible to spontaneous explosion. Adequate adult supervision may have prevented some of the injuries. There appears be a need for greater awareness regarding the dangers of these toys.
Maze
Deborah A E
DA
The Children's Hospital at Westmead Burns Research Institute, The University of Sydney, Westmead, New South Wales, Australia.
Holland
Andrew J A
AJ
D000293:Adolescent; D002057:Burns, Chemical / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005389:Firearms / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006776:Hospitals, Pediatric; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009517:New South Wales / Q000453:epidemiology; D010988:Play and Playthings / Q000293:injuries*; D014948:Wounds, Gunshot / Q000453:epidemiology