What Are the Leading Causes of Child Injury?
Teachers, childcare providers, and other responsible adults have a duty to take steps to prevent injuries to children. The following rank among the leading causes of child injury, as reported by the CDC:
Suffocation:
This is the most common cause of accidental injury death among infants less than one-year-old. Approximately 3,400 sleep-related deaths occur among babies in the U.S. every year. To help prevent suffocation, the CDC recommends placing the baby on his back on a firm, flat surface, covered only by a fitted sheet.
Drowning:
A child can drown in seconds, and it can happen wherever there is access to water. Drowning is the leading cause of unintentional injury death among children ages one through four. Swimming pools are an attractive nuisance (a dangerous condition on a property that may attract young children). Pool owners in Texas have a duty to prevent foreseeable injuries and may be held liable if they fail to do so
Motor Vehicle Crashes:
This is the leading cause of injury death among children ages five to 19. In the most recent year for which statistics are available, 6,102,936 traffic crashes occurred in the U.S. Of those accidents, 39,508 were fatal, and 1,727,608 caused injuries.
Falls:
More than 2.2 million children ages 14 and under are treated in emergency rooms yearly for injuries related to falls, as reported by Stanford Medicine. Children aged four and under account for more than half of falls among children. A child can be seriously or fatally injured falling from windows, stairs, playground equipment, furniture, and baby walkers. Nearly 200,000 children ages 14 and younger are treated in emergency rooms for playground fall injuries every year.
Burns:
Fires and burns are the fifth leading cause of accidental death among children and adults, accounting for approximately 3,500 fatalities per year, as stated by John Hopkins Medicine. Among children ages four and under who are hospitalized with burn injuries, 65% are injured by scalding, and 20% suffer contact burns. Nearly 75% of scalding burns among children are preventable.
Poisoning and Drug Overdose:
Approximately 35,000 young children are treated in emergency rooms every year after ingesting medications when adults are not looking. Children can also be poisoned by pesticides, cleaning products, paints, solvents, cosmetics, plants, carbon monoxide, and lead.
