title: An emerging etiological factor for hand injuries in the pediatric population: public exercise equipment.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this study was to describe the role of public exercise equipment in pediatric hand traumas as a preventable etiological factor.
  
  
  METHODS
  Pediatric patients with hand injuries referred from the emergency department were evaluated retrospectively. Age and gender of the patients, timing, etiology, mechanism of hand trauma, localization of the injury, diagnoses of the patients, and hospitalization rates were reviewed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Amongst the 310 pediatric patients evaluated, 31 patients (10%) experienced injury related to public exercise equipment. Within this group of patients, most were between 5 to 9 years of age, and all injuries were blunt and crush type. Lacerations and fractures were the main diagnoses. Complex injuries that required inpatient care were reported in 19.3% of the patients.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Public exercise equipment-related injuries are increasingly prevalent in pediatric hand traumas. Preventive actions such as shielding the moving parts should be taken to reduce these rates.
authors.affiliation: Manisa Turgutlu State Hospital, Department of Plastic Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery, Manisa, Turkey. berrak222@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Berrak
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Akşam
authors.affiliation: Manisa Akhisar State Hospital, Department of Plastic Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery, Manisa, Turkey.
authors.forename: Ersin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Akşam
authors.affiliation: Yıldırım Beyazıt University Ataturk Training and Research Hospital, Department of Plastic Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Candemir
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ceran
authors.affiliation: Yıldırım Beyazıt University Ataturk Training and Research Hospital, Department of Plastic Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Mustafa Erol
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Demirseren
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital; D004869:Equipment Safety; D004864:Equipment and Supplies; D015444:Exercise; D005260:Female; D050723:Fractures, Bone / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006230:Hand Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007297:Inpatients; D022125:Lacerations / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008297:Male; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014421:Turkey