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Tales from the ER: 6 real life Halloween horror stories

An emergency room doctor reveals the most frightening holiday traumas he's ever treated.

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Your neighbor's Halloween decorations likely won't spook you to death, but real—and, for the most part, preventable—dangers do lurk during this fall festival. Out of eight holidays tracked, Halloween had the fifth highest number of emergency room visits among children 18 years and under, according to data compiled from 2007 to 2015 by the National Electronic InjuryShow More

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Carving with a kitchen knife

After your family's trip to the pumpkin patch, there's but one thing to do with your hand-picked gourds—carve them!

"I've treated people with major arterial injuries in the hand and fingers," Dr. Crowell says. These lacerations tend to be sustained while carving pumpkins with sharp kitchen knives. "Show More

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Lurking food allergens

"The most common problems I see are reactions to candy," Crowell says. "I've seen some pretty serious peanut allergic reactions, where a children's airways are closing up."

An estimated 4 to 6 percent of U.S. children have food allergies of some kind. More than 160 foods can cause an allergicShow More

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Trick-or-treating after dark

"I haven't personally seen the tragic fatality of a kid getting backed over by a car," Crowell says. "That's probably the most feared Halloween injury and it certainly happens."

Over the course of 2016, 7,330 pedestrians were killed in a car accident on the road or in a driveway or parking lot.Show More

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Blazing Jack-o'-lantern burns

Candle-lit jack-o'-lanterns are about as festive as Halloween decorations get, but they're among the most dangerous, too. An estimated 860 fires caused by Halloween decorations were reported each year, on average, between 2009 and 2013, according to the National Fire Protection Association. TheseShow More

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Costume catastrophes

Crowell is no stranger to injuries caused by ill-fitting costumes, having treated a few. "Kids are running around in ghost outfits that are too large and can trip and break wrists or elbows," he says.

Falls can cause minor afflictions like bumps, scrapes and bruises. They can also result in headShow More

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Smashing pumpkins

Not all Halloween injuries happen the way you might think. Although they are meant to be stationary, pumpkins can fall from porches, ledges or windowsills—or even be thrown intentionally.

Not only can a falling pumpkin lead to a splattered mess, but a blow delivered to the head by such a heavyShow More

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