Unintentional Injury Statistics

The following are the latest statistics available from the National Safety Council, the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC), and other sources:

• Unintentional injuries continue to be the fifth leading cause of death overall, exceeded only by heart disease, cancer, stroke, and chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases. Unintentional injuries rank third in importance behind cancer and heart disease.
• The most common causes of injuries seen in emergency departments are from traffic accidents, falls, and violence.
• The top five causes of fatal unintentional injuries include: motor vehicle crashes, falls, poisoning, drowning, and fires and burns.
• Unintentional injuries are the leading cause of death in children between the ages of 1 and 21.
• Approximately 4.7 million people each year are bitten by dogs, with 800,000 bites requiring medical attention.
• In 1998, nearly 362,000 children ages 14 and under were treated in the US for bicycle-related injuries and 203 died from this type of injury.
• Strokes kill an estimated 160,000 Americans each year and are the leading cause of adult disability.
• More than 4,400 people drowned in 1998.
• One in every three adults age 65 and older falls each year.
• Falls are the leading cause of injury death in persons over the age of 65. One in every three adults in this age group falls each year.
• Childhood falls account for one-third of all fall-related emergency visits each year.
• Approximately 3,360 people in the US died in home fires in 1997.
• Roughly 3.5 million children ages 14 and under are treated for sports-related injuries each year.
• Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death in the United States for children and young adults, ages 1 to 24.
• Every hour someone dies in the US because they were not wearing a seat belt during an automobile accident.
• More than 4,700 people are alive today because of air bags. Driver deaths are being reduced by about 14 percent because of air bags.
• Sleepy drivers contribute to about 100,000 motor vehicle crashed reported to police each year.
• More than 200,000 children are injured each year on playgrounds at child care centers, parks, and schools in the US. Falls onto playground surfaces are a contributing factor in 70 percent of injuries requiring hospital visits.