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Non‐fatal injuries to young Victorians, 1986‐1991
Author(s) -
Watt Graeme M,
OzanneSmith Joan
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
medical journal of australia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.904
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1326-5377
pISSN - 0025-729X
DOI - 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1994.tb125948.x
Subject(s) - medicine , injury prevention , epidemiology , poison control , suicide prevention , occupational safety and health , human factors and ergonomics , young adult , retrospective cohort study , public health , medical emergency , emergency medicine , surgery , gerontology , nursing , pathology
Objectives To describe the epidemiology of non‐fatal injuries sustained by young Victorians requiring hospitalisation, and to provide baseline data to establish and evaluate injury prevention programs. Data source The Victorian Inpatient Minimum Database, as modified for use by Monash University Accident Research Centre. Design A five‐year Quly 1986 to June 1991) retrospective epidemiological study of 56209 15‐24‐year‐olds admitted to Victorian public hospitals because of injury. Results The annual Victorian hospital admission rate of 15‐24‐year‐olds with injuries was 1609 per 1. The major causes of admission were, in order of frequency, transport injuries, falls (excluding falls in sport), sports injuries, assault, and self‐inflicted injuries. The cost to the Victorian community in hospital expenditure is at least $31.5M per year. Of these injuries, 73.9% were unintentional; however, intentional self‐inflicted and assault injury rates were higher for both adolescents (15‐19 years) and young adults (20‐24 years) compared with other age groups. Conclusion High rates of injury for young people have been found, imposing a considerable burden on the community. As many injuries are preventable, the risk factors warrant further investigation. In particular, control measures could help reduce sports, transport‐related and intentionally inflicted injuries.