Story Created:
Dec 13, 2012 at 6:55 PM CDT
Story Updated:
Dec 14, 2012
This time of year with the cool weather has people trying to find any way to keep warm.
There's a danger you might not think of that doctors are trying to warn people about.
"We have not had that many yet this year but we obviously with the change of weather we are expecting them again to happen."
Medical Director for the emergency room at LMC, Dr. Luis Pellicia, says patients with burns from space heaters is something they deal with every winter. It can happen to anyone young or old.
"Usually the biggest mistake is to leave them unattended especially around children."
Pellicia says curiosity gets the best of them. Many children stick their fingers in the heater, burning them.
"The other problem is people leaving them on throughout the night."
And it's not just space heaters that can cause injuries, but also heating pads used for aches and pains.
"They need to understand that if you fall asleep on one of these and your skin is close to the heat element of it you will cause a burn."
Another possibly deadly threat this winter is hypothermia in the elderly. Pellicia says the good news is this is preventable by choosing to add layers of clothes.
"Two or three layers that actually will keep the heat in."
He says it's not anyone's fault for not knowing since it's usually near the century mark on the thermometers.
"Since we're not used to that type of climate we don't know how to properly dress."
