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Near drowning - Prevention

Alternative Names

Drowning - near

Prevention:

  • Avoid drinking alcohol whenever swimming or boating.
  • Drowning can occur in any container of water. Do not leave any standing water (in empty basins, buckets, ice chests, kiddy pools, or bathtubs). Secure the toilet seat cover with a child safety device.
  • Fence all pools and spas. Secure all the doors to the outside, and install pool and door alarms.
  • If your child is missing, check the pool immediately.
  • Never allow children to swim alone or unsupervised regardless of their ability to swim.
  • Never leave children alone for any period of time or let them leave your line of sight around any pool or body of water. Drownings have occurred when parents left "for just a minute" to answer the phone or door.
  • Observe water safety rules.
  • Take a water safety course.
  • Reviewed last on: 1/4/2011
  • Jacob L. Heller, MD, MHA, Emergency Medicine, Virginia Mason Medical Center, Seattle, Washington. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

References

Richards DB, Knaut AL. Drowning. In: Marx JA, Hockberger RS, Walls RM, et al, eds. Rosen’s Emergency Medicine: Concepts and Clinical Practice. 7th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Mosby Elsevier; 2009:chap 143.

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The information provided herein should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. A licensed medical professional should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions. Call 911 for all medical emergencies. Links to other sites are provided for information only -- they do not constitute endorsements of those other sites. © 1997- A.D.A.M., Inc. Any duplication or distribution of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited.
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