Introduction to Door Related Finger Accidents and How to Prevent Them

If you get your fingers caught between the hinge side of the door and the frame, your fingers can be subjected to a force of up to 40 tonnes per square inch! Of course, nobody in their right mind would want to be subjected to that crushing pressure. But you do not have to worry about these accidents because they are not very common, right? Wrong! Door related finger accidents are way more commonplace than you imagine, especially among children under the age of eight.

In fact, around 30,000 children suffer door related finger injuries in the UK, each year! Children are at higher risk because they do not understand the full potential of the danger. Not to mention they are more curious and are often not able to react as instantaneously in case of a door closing on their fingers. Now, if you are under the impression that only children are at-risk to door accidents, then you are mistaken. These accidents are also a typical problem for the elderly as their reflexes are not always quick enough to free their fingers from the door at the right time.

More often than not, door related accidents only lead to bruised and swollen fingers. There is usually a cut around the fingernail which can cause the nail to turn black and possibly fall off. These injuries are definitely painful but nothing alarming for the most part. However, as mentioned previously, the hinge side of the doors exerts a compression that can reach 40 tonnes per square inch. This means that any injury caused by fingers being caught between the door hinges has the potential to result in lifelong damage. It may perhaps even necessitate amputation!

Despite the fact that door related finger injuries are very painful, they are actually fairly easy to avoid.

The best way to avoid the problem is by getting rid of the root cause of the problem. Installing door hinge guards does just that. It either closes or minimizes the opening between the door and the frame. This prevents people from putting their fingers into the hinge, thus ruling out the possibility of trapped fingers.

Prevention is always better than cure. Whether you run a school, day care centre, nursery, hotel, restaurant or any other high-traffic establishment, you may want to consider installing door safety products on your premises. Even in your home, you can install a hinge guard on the doors so as to ensure that your home is protected against any severe door-related finger injuries.