A Post New Year's PSA
I make a point of keeping patient information confidential. I NEVER post information that could identify an individual. If the Houston Chronicle wants to however I can't stop them: www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/metro/6192179.html
The moral of that story is "Fireworks and alcohol DO NOT MIX!" Drinking while shooting fireworks makes you think that holding the mortar tube for an air-burst shell is a good idea. The summary for the link phobic: He was holding the cardboard tube launcher in his hands when the shell exploded IN THE TUBE. He lost some tissue from his hand and had a wound to his abdomen. He'll survive. He'll probably even recover use of his hand (according to the news article), but I bet he won't have learned the lesson.
On another note:
I normally enjoy watching Myth Busters. For the most part I think they do good work testing myths so the rest of us don't have to (I know I would and still occasionally do). I think however that they made a HIGHLY irresponsible statement in an episode on bullets fired into the air. Adam and Jamie "conclusively proved" that a bullet falling out of the sky travels at its terminal velocity, which is supposedly too slow to cause actual injury.
Yes, that's a 9 mm bullet in someone's thumb! I couldn't believe it at first, but had the shot occurred at a range close enough for the shooter to aim the shot effectively it would've gone completely through the victim's hand without really slowing down. The patient said that he was walking to work when he felt something hit him in the hand. He never heard the gunshot.
DO NOT SHOOT GUNS INTO THE AIR EVER! IF YOU'RE NOT SHOOTING AT A SAFE TARGET DO NOT PULL THE TRIGGER!
The moral of that story is "Fireworks and alcohol DO NOT MIX!" Drinking while shooting fireworks makes you think that holding the mortar tube for an air-burst shell is a good idea. The summary for the link phobic: He was holding the cardboard tube launcher in his hands when the shell exploded IN THE TUBE. He lost some tissue from his hand and had a wound to his abdomen. He'll survive. He'll probably even recover use of his hand (according to the news article), but I bet he won't have learned the lesson.
On another note:
I normally enjoy watching Myth Busters. For the most part I think they do good work testing myths so the rest of us don't have to (I know I would and still occasionally do). I think however that they made a HIGHLY irresponsible statement in an episode on bullets fired into the air. Adam and Jamie "conclusively proved" that a bullet falling out of the sky travels at its terminal velocity, which is supposedly too slow to cause actual injury.
Yes, that's a 9 mm bullet in someone's thumb! I couldn't believe it at first, but had the shot occurred at a range close enough for the shooter to aim the shot effectively it would've gone completely through the victim's hand without really slowing down. The patient said that he was walking to work when he felt something hit him in the hand. He never heard the gunshot.
DO NOT SHOOT GUNS INTO THE AIR EVER! IF YOU'RE NOT SHOOTING AT A SAFE TARGET DO NOT PULL THE TRIGGER!