Injury and Violence
Injury includes a wide range of health topics, from unintentional injuries, such as car
crashes and falls, to intentional injuries, such as assault and suicide. The consequences
of injury are not just physical. Many people who suffer an injury may also have mental
health and financial problems that can last a lifetime. The good news is that many injuries
are preventable. From seat belts to violence prevention programs, injury prevention saves lives.
Injuries are the leading cause of death among persons aged 1-44 years, resulting in more
than 187,000 deaths per year in the United States. An additional 31.7 million persons suffer
a non-fatal injury requiring medical attention each
year.
In addition to the immediate physical consequence, injuries impact health
by contributing to:
- Premature death
- Disability
- Poor mental health
- High medical costs
- Lost productivity
Injury data cover a broad array of topics. Here are some injury-related statistics for the United
States:
- Each year, injuries are responsible for:
- More than 187,000 deaths.
- More than 31.7 million emergency department visits.
- More than 2.8 million hospitalizations.
- $406 billion in medical care and lost productivity.
- Intentional injuries account for 7% of all non-fatal injuries and 33% of injury-related fatalities.
- Injuries are the leading cause of disability, regardless of age, gender, race/ethnicity, or socioeconomic status.
There are many factors that can affect the risk of unintentional injury and violence:
- Individual characteristics, such as education, age, and sex
- Individual behaviors, such as alcohol use or risk-taking
- Physical environment, such as safe homes and roadways
- Social environment, such as relationships and community cohesion
- Societal factors, such as cultural beliefs, laws, and regulations
The risk of injury can be reduced in a large number of ways. For unintentional injuries,
prevention methods may include changes to the environment, improvements in technology and product
safety, or legislation and enforcement of safety laws. For intentional injuries, prevention
efforts may include changes in social norms surrounding violence, policy changes that address
the social and economic conditions that are associated with violence, or improvements in skills
such as conflict resolution and coping.
Injuries are tracked using a range of surveys, in addition to mortality statistics. Some examples include:
For more information on tracking tobacco use health objectives, please visit the Healthy People 2020 Injury and Violence Prevention objectives page here.
- National Vital Statistics System (NVSS)
- National Hospital Discharge Survey (NHDS)
- Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS)
- National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS)
- Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBS)
- National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS)
For more information on tracking tobacco use health objectives, please visit the Healthy People 2020 Injury and Violence Prevention objectives page here.
Unintentional Injury
- Injury - Unintentional Injury Deaths
- Injury - Unintentional Injury Hospitalization
- Injury - Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Deaths
- Injury - Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Emergency Department Visits
- Injury - Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Hospital Inpatient Visits
- Injury - Older Adult Falls Deaths
- Injury - Older Adult Falls Hospitalizations
- Injury - Child Injury Deaths
- Injury - Motor Vehicle Traffic Crash Deaths
- Seat Belt Use Among Adolescents
Intentional Injury / Violence
- Injury - Homicide in New Mexico
- Injury - Firearm Injury Death
- Injury - Suicide Death
- Mental Health - Youth Attempted Suicide
- Mental Health - Youth Seriously Considered Suicide
- Child Abuse and Neglect
- Injury - Domestic Violence
- Injury - Sexual Violence
- Injury - Youth History of Forced Sex
- Injury - Youth Physical Dating Violence
Alcohol-Related Injury
- Alcohol - Alcohol-Related Injury Deaths
- Alcohol - Alcohol-Related Motor Vehicle Traffic Crash (MVTC) Death
- Alcohol - Drinking and Driving Among Adults
- Alcohol - Drinking and Driving Among Youth
Environmental and Occupational Injury
Hospitalization for Traumatic Brain Injury
Injury Mortality
These links will run the query and take you to the results page. To modify the query criteria, you can use the top left ("MODIFY Query") navigation button on the query results page.- Unintentional Injury Deaths
- Deaths of Despair
- Suicide Deaths
- Drug Overdose Deaths
- Alcohol-related Injury Deaths
- Alcohol-related Deaths (includes alcohol-related injury and chronic disease deaths)
- Older Adult Falls Deaths
- Motor Vehicle Traffic Crash Deaths
- Firearm Injury Deaths
- Homicide Deaths
Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS)
- Seat Belt Use
- Adults Age 45 Years and Over Who Fell
- Adults Age 45 Years and Over Who Were Injured in a Fall
Youth Risk and Resiliency Survey (YRRS)
- Rarely or never wore a bicycle helmet
- Rarely or never wore a seatbelt
- Rode with a drinking driver in the past 30 days
- Drinking and driving in the past 30 days
- Texted or emailed while driving in the past 30 days
- Carried a weapon in the past 30 days
- Carried a gun in the past 30 days
- Carried a weapon on school property in the past 30 days
- Skipped school because of safety concerns in the past 30 days
- In a physical fight in the past 12 months
- In a physical fight on school property in the past 12 months
- Bullied on school property in the past 12 months
- Ever physically forced to have sexual intercourse
- Physical dating violence in the past 12 months, among those who dated
- Physical dating violence in the past 12 months
- Sexual dating violence in the past 12 months, among those who dated
- Sexual dating violence in the past 12 months