Childhood gunshot injuries in the Ottawa area

To determine the incidence of non-fatal firearm injuries in the Ottawa area, we retrospectively reviewed the charts of all children admitted to the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario for firearm injuries in the last 15 years. The Children's Hospital is the only pediatric tertiary care care centre in the Eastern Ontario and Western Quebec areas, serving a child population of 600,000. Eighteen children were admitted to our hospital for firearm injuries during this period; six suffered long-term disabilities. The low number of non-fatal firearm injuries at our institution reflects national trends in the incidence of fatal firearm injuries in Canadian children and adolescents.