|
|
 |
Injuries
among Native Americans: Fact Sheet
Occurrence
Groups at
Risk
Native Americans as a group are at increased risk of injury, but Native
American males are at even greater risk for many types of injuries. Compared
to their female counterparts, Native American males ages 20
years and older are (CDC 2003)
-
twice as likely to die from
a motor vehicle crash.
-
nearly four times more
likely to die from pedestrian-related injury.
-
nearly twice
as likely to die from fire and burn injuries.
-
five times
more likely to drown.
-
four times more likely to
commit suicide.
-
three times more likely to
be murdered.
Injury rates among Native Americans vary between state and regional areas.
Risk Factors
-
Motor vehicle
crashes and pedestrian-related injury were the leading causes of
unintentional injury-related death among Native American adults 20 years
and older. Adult motor vehicle-related death rates for Native Americans
were more than twice that of whites and almost twice that of blacks (CDC
2003).
-
Adult
pedestrian death rates for Native Americans were almost three and one-half
times that of whites and twice that of blacks (CDC 2003).
-
Fire-related
death rates for Native Americans were almost two times greater than that
of whites. Rates for blacks were almost twice as high as those for Native
Americans (CDC 2003).
-
Native American
drowning rates were nearly three times that of whites and more than twice
that of blacks (CDC 2003).
-
Among Native
Americans 19 years and younger, motor vehicle crashes were the leading
cause of injury-related death, followed by suicide, homicide, drowning,
and fires. Between 1989 and 1998, firearm-related death rates increased
13%; homicide increased 20%; and suicide rates remained unchanged (Wallace
2003).
References
Adekoya N,
Wallace LJD. Traumatic brain injury—American Indians and Alaska
Natives—United States, 1992–1996. MMWR 2002;51(14):303–5.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Web-Based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS)(2003).
Available from: URL:
www.cdc.gov/ncipc/wisqars.
Wallace LJD,
Patel R, Dellinger A. Injury mortality among American Indian and Alaska
Native Children and Youth — United States, 1989–1998. MMWR
2003;52(30):697–701.
Indian Health
Service. Indian health focus: injuries, 1989–99. U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services, Indian Health Service, 1999.
Wallace LJD. Injuries among American Indian
and Alaska Native Children, 1985–1996. Atlanta (GA): CDC, 2000.
Back
to Top
|
