A multicenter, citywide report on recurrent violent injury

Area of Science:

• Trauma Surgery
• Public Health
• Epidemiology

Background:

• Recurrent violent trauma incidence and risk factors are not well-established.
• Understanding these factors is crucial for developing targeted violence prevention strategies.
• This study aims to identify at-risk populations for recurrent violent injuries in an urban setting.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the incidence of recurrent violent injury.
• To identify risk factors associated with recurrent violent injury.
• To inform violence prevention efforts by identifying high-risk cohorts.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective, citywide study of patients with blunt assault or penetrating trauma (2013-2019).
• Patient tracking across trauma centers using name and date of birth.
• Multivariable Cox proportional hazard model to analyze risk factors for readmission.

Main Results:

• The recurrent injury rate was 6.33% (836/13,211 patients).
• Risk factors for re-injury included male sex, age 14-45, discharge to jail or against medical advice, and moderate/severe head injury.
• Discharge to home was associated with a lower re-injury rate; no association found with mechanism of injury or overall injury severity.

Conclusions:

• Despite a low overall recurrence rate, specific demographics are at higher risk.
• Violence prevention programs should target both injured individuals and their non-injured peers.
• Identifying and intervening with at-risk individuals can reduce recurrent violent injuries.