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Predictors and Outcomes of Pediatric Firearm Injuries Treated in the Emergency Department: Differences by Mechanism of Intent
Author(s) -
Monuteaux Michael C.,
Mannix Rebekah,
Fleegler Eric W.,
Lee Lois K.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
academic emergency medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.221
H-Index - 124
eISSN - 1553-2712
pISSN - 1069-6563
DOI - 10.1111/acem.12986
Subject(s) - medicine , injury prevention , occupational safety and health , poison control , pediatric trauma , emergency department , emergency medicine , external cause , suicide prevention , diagnosis code , retrospective cohort study , incidence (geometry) , injury severity score , public health , human factors and ergonomics , medical emergency , environmental health , population , surgery , psychiatry , physics , nursing , pathology , optics
Objective Firearm injuries among children are a major clinical and public health concern and one of the leading causes of pediatric fatalities. Our objective was to investigate differences in predictors and clinical outcomes between self‐inflicted, violent, and unintentional pediatric firearm injuries for patients who present to pediatric emergency departments ( ED s). Methods We conducted a retrospective study of patients 0 to 21 years old treated in 37 pediatric academic ED s from 2004 to 2014. Patients were classified into the injury intent categories of self‐inflicted, violent, and unintentional firearm injury using the International Classification of Diseases, 9th edition, Clinical Modification ( ICD ‐9‐ CM ) diagnoses and external causes of injury codes. Multivariable multinomial regression models compared groups. Results We identified 9,628 firearm injuries from 2004 to 2014: 109 (1%) self‐inflicted, 2,394 (25%) violent, and 7,125 (74%) unintentional. Male sex, increasing age, nonwhite race, public insurance, residing in an urban zip code, and lower zip code–level median household income were all independently associated with violent firearm injuries, relative to self‐inflicted and unintentional injuries. Self‐inflicted injuries were at the highest risk for hospital admission, death, intensive care unit services, surgical services, and increased length of stay, followed by violent injuries with intermediate risk and unintentional injuries at the lowest risk Conclusions Self‐inflicted, violent, and unintentional firearm injuries in children had distinct demographic risk factors and clinical and utilization outcomes. Targeted prevention and intervention efforts should be developed to reduce the incidence and severity of these injuries.