Evidence-based drowning prevention in older adults: a rapid review and Haddon's matrix

Drowning is the third leading cause of unintentional injury deaths worldwide. While multiple factors contribute to the risk of drowning, drowning settings, patterns and rates vary by age. Drowning prevention efforts should be tailored based on age; however, most drowning prevention interventions focus on children and do not address the injury burden in older adults that disproportionately affects ageing societies.

A formal rapid review of drowning prevention studies of adults aged 50 years and older published between 1 January 2008 and 30 November 2025 was conducted. Results were analysed using Haddon's matrix, a tool that organises interventions by different phases of injury and injury components.

Eight studies were eligible for data extraction. Most interventions targeted the general population, reporting differing age ranges of older adults. Most studies used a predrowning behavioural intervention for both young and older populations in high-income countries.

Drowning prevention research in older adults was limited, lacking common definitions of what age groups constitute older adults and lacking diversity in levels of prevention, target injury components and settings unique to older adults. Recent studies indicate that drowning risk factors for older adults differ from those of other age groups and underscore the importance of focusing drowning prevention efforts on this growing high-risk group.

Future drowning prevention efforts for older adults need to address the unique risk factors of the older age group and a wider array of types of prevention.