Maternal reports of child injuries in Canada: trends and patterns by age and gender
1Centre for Community Child Health Research, Department of Health Care and Epidemiology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. injury@cw.bc.ca
Insights
Maternal reports show childhood injuries are common, affecting 10% of Canadian children. Boys and older children experience more injuries, with falls being the most frequent cause.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Public Health
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Childhood injuries represent a significant public health concern.
- Understanding injury patterns by demographics is crucial for prevention.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine gender and age differences in maternal reports of childhood injuries.
- To explore injury causes, nature, body part, and location.
- To investigate associations with socioeconomic factors and activity limitations.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional study using data from 22,831 children (Cycle 1, 1995 Canadian National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth).
- Descriptive analyses and chi-squared tests for injury variations by child gender and age.
- Logistic regressions to assess socioeconomic indicators, injury, and activity limitations.
Main Results:
- Boys experience more injuries than girls; injuries increase with child age.
- Falls are the most common injury source, followed by scalds/poisonings (young children) and sports injuries (older children).
- Injuries predominantly occur at home for young children and at school for older children; single marital status is a risk factor for boys.
Conclusions:
- Maternally reported injuries affect 10% of Canadian children, often leading to activity limitations.
- Preventative strategies must consider child age and gender.
- Further research into socioeconomic factors and injury prevention is warranted.
Objectives:
This study examines gender and age differences in maternal reports of injuries in a cross sectional group of children aged 0-11 years. The cause, nature, body part injured, and location of injury are explored, as are the associations with family socioeconomic indicators and associations with limitations in activities.
Methods:
Data for 22831 children and their families come from cycle 1 of the Canadian National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth collected in 1995. Descriptive analyses and chi2 tests for trends are used to examine injury variations by child gender and age. Logistic regressions are used to examine the relationship between socioeconomic indicators and injury and the associations between injury and limitations in activities.
Results:
Consistent with findings from hospital data, boys experience more injuries than girls, and injuries increase with child age. Falls are the most common sources of maternally reported injuries, followed by scalds/poisonings for young children and sports injuries for school aged children. The majority of injuries occur in or around the home for young children, but at school for older children. For maternal reports of childhood injuries, single marital status is a risk factor for boys.
Conclusions:
Maternally reported injuries occur in 10% of Canadian children and many of these are associated with limitations in activities. Preventative strategies should take both child age and gender into consideration.
