Noah

Christmas novelties and decorations, while within easy reach, are not suitable for children to play with and can lead to accidental injury. Noah’s mum, Caroline, tells his story.
 
“Last Christmas we hung our Christmas decorations up onto our tree as I have done every year without ever thinking about potential hazards. My five-year-old son, Noah, was playing in the living room near the tree, he slipped and fell and as he did he knocked a glass bauble off the tree and his face landed on it. The Christmas decoration was an expensive thick antique glass style with a thick rope to attach to the tree.
 
He stood up and shouted ‘mummy’ and when I looked at him, I actually couldn’t believe what I saw… the skin on his chin was just flapping open!
 
We called an ambulance straight away, but as he was breathing he was not considered an emergency and we waited over an hour. At this point I called a school mum friend who is a nurse, she advised he needed surgery as soon as possible, and by sheer luck her husband is a top facial plastic surgeon and they arranged for us to be seen at the hospital he works at. We jumped in a taxi and on arrival were met by the surgeon who literally saved Noah’s face.

He needed two hours of surgery, 40 stitches and it missed his facial nerve by a whisper, if it had cut through, Noah would never have been able to eat or drink normally and would have lost all facial movement. If the glass bauble had cut higher up his face, he could have lost his eye. A little lower down it could have caught his jugular and caused his death.
 
Simon, our surgeon was shocked at the severity of the wound and when he returned home he took down every glass bauble. Noah was so incredibly brave and he didn’t have any anaesthetic during surgery, he is a little hero and I’m so grateful it wasn’t worse. He has a significant scar on his chin that we massage every day. The surgeon said Noah’s recovery has exceeded his expectations and he now has full facial movement.
 
I had never thought about the danger of glass decorations that can so easily be knocked of the tree, by pets, toddlers walking past etc, especially when the tree starts drooping.
 
I am shocked to have since learned that Christmas decorations have no quality and safety legislation.  We need retailers to at least carry a warning on potential hazards for decorations so people can make informed decisions when selecting them for their homes, and also perhaps pay more attention to how securely they are displayed."

For more information on Christmas safety advice, visit our page here

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