Hospitals were inundated with victims of exploding head syndrome on Friday night after a screening of BBC 1's Room 101.
TV watchdogs are now accusing the station of callously chasing ratings at the expense of viewers' safety.
The incidents began at around 8.45 pm after show host, Frank Skinner, asked the panel - rock star Alice Cooper, TV wildlife presenter Chris Packham and TV presenter Chris Tarrant - to name the celebrities they would put in the infamous Room 101.
Cooper nominated 'reality show' nobodies, Packham chose Radio 1 DJ Chris Moyles and Tarrant plumped for inept 'song-and-dance' twins Jedward.
"When they showed a clip of those bizarrely-coiffed twits, my Harry's head just popped," said Mrs Cynthia Plinth, of Normanton, Derbyshire.
"When we got to the hospital there were loads of other people with exploded heads waiting at A&E - they all said they'd been watching."
But the show started a second wave of the syndrome when the panel were asked to nominate animal to consign.
Mrs Carmella Snood, of Yeadon, West Yorkshire, said: "I could see my Lemuel was getting agitated - he hates Moyles and Jedward and reality shows, so he was already close to the edge. But when Packham chose the human race as the animal for Room 101 he just went, 'That f*****g predictable c**t' and his head exploded."
A spokesman for the NHS said last night: "We believe the BBC has been irresponsible in chasing viewer ratings in screening this explosive sort of programme.
"Our services were pushed to the limit, but I'm glad to say that we expect all victims will recover."
