 nintentional ("accidental") injuries are the greatest threat to the life and health of children. Unintentional injury remains the leading cause of death among children ages 1 to 14 in the United States. In fact, 5,162 children ages 14 and under died in 2005 from an unintentional injury, and 6,253,661 emergency room visits for unintentional injuries in this age group occurred in 2006. Many of these deaths and injuries, which can lead to serious and permanent disabilities, could have been prevented. Children ages 4 and under have the highest fatality rate from unintentional injury, more than twice that of all other age groups. Between 1987 and 2005 there was a 35 percent decrease in fatal unintentional injuries in this group. Suffocation injury, which includes choking and strangulation, is the leading cause of death from unintentional injury among infants under age 1, accounting for nearly 69 percent of deaths from unintentional injury. Among ages 1 to 4, drowning is the leading cause of fatal injury and accounts for 30 percent of deaths from unintentional injury. Infants and young children are at greater risk of many types of injury due to their limited physical coordination and cognitive abilities; including small size, developing bones and muscles and innate curiosity. Children ages 5 to 9 have the lowest fatality rate from unintentional injury among children ages 14 and under. For ages 5 to 9, the fatality rate dropped by 54 percent from 1987 to 2005. Motor vehicle occupant injuries remain the leading cause of death in this age group, accounting for 22 percent of fatal unintentional injuries. Children ages 10 to 14 have a higher fatality rate from unintentional injury than ages 5 to 9 but a lower rate than ages 4 and under. For ages 10 to 14, the fatality rate dropped by 51 percent from 1987 to 2005. Motor vehicle occupant injuries remain the leading killer of children ages 10 to 14, accounting for 25 percent of fatal unintentional injuries.GenderThe fatality rate from unintentional injury is higher among males than females, as is the actual number of deaths. In 2005, approximately 3,000 boys and 2,000 girls ages 14 and under died from unintentional injury. This gap was more than twice as great in 1987 at 2,300, and the fatality rate among boys has decreased by almost 50 percent, compared to 37 percent among girls. For all injury risk areas, males generally have a higher rate of injury than females. This can be attributed to a variety of factors, including biology (differences in temperament), exposure to risky behavior, gender socialization and cognitive differences. Parents of children 14 and under can do much more to keep their children safe. A 2008 report from Safe Kids USA stated: "While parents are generally consistent in keeping young children in the appropriate car seat or booster seat and making sure children are accompanied by an adult when crossing the street, many parents are less consistent with other important safety behavior, such as testing smoke alarm batteries or making sure their child wears a helmet when riding a bike, skateboard, scooter, or inline skates. Parents reinforce some safety habits with their children, but discuss others very infrequently or not at all. Some parents do not recognize the risks of unintentional injury. The majority of parents say that they want to learn and do more to prevent unintentional injuries, although they find it difficult to prioritize safety education among competing responsibilities." The level of supervision of young children is often not sufficient to prevent some unintentional injuries, such as bathtub drownings and falls down stairs. In addition, parents in low-income households face a financial barrier to purchasing some of the important safety devices. While significant progress has been made in the past 20 years, more work needs to be done to further decrease the rate of unintentional injuries and deaths among children. Source: Report to the Nation: Trends in Unintentional Childhood Injury Mortality and Parental Views on Child Safety, Safe Kids USA, April, 2008. |
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| Safe Kids Worldwide |