HOLLYWOOD, Fla. – The popularity of virtual reality headsets is rising rapidly but so are injuries related to the use of these devices.
Because a VR headset obscures the users’ view of their actual surroundings, a player can easily get hurt by objects around them.
Emergency room doctors are seeing everything from broken knee caps, limb fractures, facial trauma and concussions.
“A whole variety of injuries can occur just from tripping over house hold objects that you know where they are and I know where they are but if your eyes are in a different reality and you’re not seeing what’s there, it’s as if it isn’t there,” said Dr. Heidi Cohen, Assistant Medical Director of the Pediatric Emergency Department at Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital in Hollywood.
Cohen said it’s vital to clear the room of any objects, creating a safe, defined place for virtual reality gaming.
Pediatric experts say it’s important to limit all recreational video use among children to a combined total of less than 2 hours a day.
One hour is considered best to avoid vision problems and developmental issues.
And the CDC reports that babies born to mothers vaccinated against COVID were 61 percent less likely to be hospitalized with the virus if their mother received both doses before delivery.
The report, focusing on babies 6 months and younger, also showed the closer the mother received both vaccinations to the delivery date increased the level of protection against hospitalization by 80 percent.
The report showed 84 percent of infants hospitalized with COVID were born to unvaccinated parents.