June 21 marks the official start of summer, and with that comes hordes of people visiting pools and beaches.
Several incidences have been reported of children gulping in water at the pool, seem ok, then stop breathing hours later.
This tragic scenario is the focus of today’s Fact Check.
Fact Check: It is possible for someone to die from drowning hours after getting out of the water.
Our KRIS 6 Fact Check Team researched this topic, and it is a Fact.
Many people refer to it as ‘Dry Drowning’ but doctors say the accurate term is ‘Delayed Drowning.’
Children who are submerged in water for a period of time and get rescued can still be in danger.
One local pediatrician says there’s a specific window of time where parents should be aware of.
“Children can have an event where they aspirate water, meaning they breathe it in, water gets into their airway, and they may come out of the water and cough and sputter and gag like we’ve all experienced before,” said Dr. Kate Hensley. “If a child has a water aspiration event, and then they seem to recover; if they’re going to get into trouble, they’re going to do it within 4 to 6 hours, it’s not going to be days later.”
Dr. Hensley says that during those 4 to 6 hours, it’s important to observe children. If they continue to cough, have trouble breathing, is vomiting or gets overly tired up to 6 hours after leaving the water, get them to an emergency room as soon as possible.
