Injury Prevention articles from September 2002

Injury Prevention archives from September 2002

From the editor's desk: keys to success, WHO's world report on violence and health, Montreal Declaration, motor vehicle injuries. (Editorial).(World Health Organization)
September 1, 2002... KEYS TO SUCCESS: SOLID DATA AND STORY TELLING For success in injury prevention measured not just as doing good research and having it published in good journals (such as this), but in getting action to follow, at least two elements are...

A first for the journal. (Lacunae).
September 1, 2002... Another first for injury Prevention: now appearing on our web site is a French language version of a review of a new book, "Les accidents de l'enfant en France. Quelle prevention, quelle evaluation?" by Anne Tursz and Pascale Gerbouin-Rerolle....

Injury prevention and indigenous peoples: working with indigenous peoples provides unique opportunities for injury prevention. (Indigenous Peoples).
September 1, 2002... Two articles in this issue of Injury Prevention concern injuries among indigenous peoples, the Navajo or Dine people of the southwestern United States, and the Aboriginal peoples of Western Australia. (1,2) The issues raised by these studies...

Guns in the world: old news and new news; the worldwide small arms epidemic must be controlled. (Guns).
September 1, 2002... In the wake of September 11, it is more obvious than ever that small arms can bring about large carnage, and that they will continue to figure prominently in regional conflicts. It is no exaggeration to say that it is now urgent to understand...

Killer biscuits wanted for attempted murder (the actual Associated Press headline). (Lacunae).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Linda Burnett, 23, a resident of San Diego, was visiting her in-laws and while there went to a nearby supermarket to pick up some groceries. Several people noticed her sitting in her car with the windows rolled up and with her eyes closed, with...

Chiropractic opinions on baby walkers. (Lacunae).(back injury risks)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... The Chiropractic Association of Australia has added its voice to concerns over the use of baby walkers. The association argues that the products should be banned because, according to spokesman Benjamin Schutte, "in addition to the injury risk...

Apparent failure of shark repellent device. (Lacunae).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... A number of products have been developed to protect those in the water from attacks by sharks. In what is reported to be the first such attack an Australian scallop diver has been attacked and killed by a shark while wearing such a device. The...

People in the news. (News and Notes).(Larry Eicher dies)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... The death of Dr Larry Eicher, Secretary General of the International Standards Organization occurred in March after a short illness. An American citizen, Dr Eicher was appointed ISO Secretary General in May 1986, having joined the organization...

US crash bill reaches $230.6 billion. (News and Notes).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... The US Transportation Secretary has announced that the economic impact of motor vehicle crashes on America's roadways has reached $230.6 billion a year, or an average of $820 for every person living in the United States. His announcement was...

Driveway deaths report. (News and Notes).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Using information extracted from coronial records, an report summarises the characteristics of 36 events that occurred between 1996 and 1998 involving fatalities of young children in Australia as a result of impacts with low speed motor...

Support for child passenger laws. (News and Notes).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... An Insurance Research Council (IRC) survey in May revealed that 95% of Americans agreed that laws requiring young children to be in safety seats and older children to be in adult seat belts are an excellent or a good idea. In households with...

Evidence-Based Health Promotion. (News and Notes).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... A new publication, Evidence-Based Health Promotion: Child Injury Prevention, produced by the Victorian Department of Human Services, presents a systematic review of child injury prevention interventions as they relate to specific types of...

Keymark progress. (News and Notes).(European product standards)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... In March 2002, the CEN Certification Board empowered the first certification bodies to grant the keymark, more in particular, for thermal insulation products for buildings. The Keymark is a European CEN/CENELEC mark. It is a third party...

NHTSA findings. (News and Notes).(National Highway Traffic Safety Administration)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... A recent National Highway Traffic Safety Administration report said that 15 passenger vans (like Dodge Ram and Ford Econoline) are more likely to roll over and occupants are less likely to wear seat belts, than buses or minivans. The vans are...

European Lighters Standard. (News and Notes).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Members of CEN, the European standards body, have adopted the European Standard EN 13869 Lighters--Child resistance for disposable and novelty lighters--Safety requirements and test methods, despite strenuous lobbying against it by some Chinese...

Australian research network. (News and Notes).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... The excellent publication injury issues Monitor, published by the Research Centre for Injury Studies at Flinders University in Adelaide, reported in its May issue on a two day workshop that was held at the Monash University Accident Research...

Injury prevention model may improve patient safety. (News and Notes).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Patients suffer injuries while hospitalized -- an estimated 44 000 to 98 000 Americans die each year while in hospital. A team of Medical College of Wisconsin researchers, led by Dr Peter Layde, professor of family and community medicine and...

New coding classification. (News and Notes).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... A new international classification for coding external causes of injury is available on-line at www.iceci.org. The International Classification of External Causes of Injury (ICECI) is based on best practices of injury surveillance and on...

School start times and auto accidents. (News and Notes).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Do high schools that start the day early in the morning put their students at greater risk of getting into a car accident? Research presented at the Associated Professional Sleep Societies' annual meeting in June 2002 suggests that they do. Add...

Minibus safety package. (News and Notes).(bus driving training)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... BUSK Minibus Complete is a training package designed for teachers and voluntary drivers of minibuses who do not hold a professional driving licence. The scheme has been created by UK safety group Belt Up School Kids (BUSK). It identified the...

New on the RCIS Web. (News and Notes).(Research Centre for Injury Studies)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... The following publications are available through the Research Centre for Injury Studies, Flinders University of South Australia, at www.nisu.flinders.edu.au: * Information sources for injury prevention among indigenous Australians --...

Handgun sales fall. (News and Notes).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Sales of pistols in California dropped to a record low last year while sales of shotguns and rifles increased, officials announced yesterday. Although buying whims are difficult to measure, gun control advocates said the dramatic 23% decrease...

Requirements for fencing pools. (News and Notes).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Pool owners in Victoria, Australia, without adequate fences and barriers faced considerably increased fines from December 2001. Building regulations require all pools and spas capable of holding more than 300 mm of water must have a childproof...

Training developments. (News and Notes).(injury prevention training)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... The University of North Carolina is host university for an initiative that involves a collaboration between the National Association of Injury Control Research Centers (NAICRC) and the State and Territorial Injury Prevention Directors'...

Injury strategy for Wales. (News and Notes).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... An injury prevention strategy for Wales has been drafted by members of Collaboration in Accident Prevention and Injury Control (CAPIC), a virtual Wales Injury Prevention Network, which is supported by the National Assembly for Wales. The...

New Zealand Injury Prevention Strategy. (News and Notes).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... The New Zealand government has announced the development of a New Zealand Injury Prevention Strategy (NZIPS). The NZIPS reflects the government's aims to establish an overall vision and strategic framework for the injury prevention activities...

Mowers recalled. (News and Notes).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... In March, the US Consumer Products Safety Commission announced that it was cooperating with three manufacturers of ride-on lawn mowers to recall over 60 000 mowers after problems with the fuel system. There had been a small number of serious...

ICIP shuts down. (News and Notes).(International Center for Injury Prevention)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... The International Center for Injury Prevention (ICIP) announced in March that it was cancelling its Sacramento conference and curtailing other activities. The apparent reasons relate to its rapid growth and the poor economy. In the aftermath,...

Longitudinal Study of Australian Children. (News and Notes).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Ten thousand toddlers will be tracked over nearly a decade in a $20 million (US$l0.4m) national study of children's lives. The Longitudinal Study of Australian Children will collect information on events that affect development, including...

US road casualty rates fall. (News and Notes).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... According to US Department of Transportation's NHTSA estimates, traffic fatality and injury rates remained at historic lows in 2001. Deaths of children ages 15 and under dropped to the lowest level since record keeping began, The preliminary...

... while in the UK deaths rise. (News and Notes).(traffic accidents)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Road casualties were down again in 2001, but road deaths up 1%. Figures published by the UK Department for Transport showed the number of people seriously injured in accidents on Britain's roads fell by a further 3% (from 38 155 in 2000 to 37...

Success for reduced urban speed limit. (News and Notes).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... About 12 months ago the default speed limit for urban areas in the Australian state of Victoria was reduced from 60 to 50 km/h. The reduced speed limit is a key initiative under the Arrive alive! Victoria's Road Safety Strategy 2002-2007, which...

Proposed revisions to child restraint standard. (News and Notes).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... The US Department of Transportation's NHTSA has proposed multiple revisions to the federal safety standard for child restraint systems. The proposed revisions include updating the seat assembly used to test child restraints, adding...

Mug and cup scalds resource. (News and Notes).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... The UK's Child Accident Prevention Trust (CAPT) has produced a new resource, Fancy a cuppa?, to combat cup and mug scalds. A meeting of prevention specialist told CAPT that there was little available to address these injuries, which are...

Huge infant car seat recall. (News and Notes).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Graco Children's Products is recalling over 900 000 SnugRide infant car seats equipped with a base manufactured in the USA between August 1999 and February 2002. A number of SnugRide Infant Car Seats may have missing components on the base or...

Trends in BB/pellet gun injuries in children and teenagers in the United States, 1985-99. (Original Article).
September 1, 2002... Objective: To characterize national trends in non-fatal BB/pellet gun related injury rates for persons aged 19 years or younger in relation to trends in non-fatal and fatal firearm related injury rates and discuss these trends in light of...

Study of the effectiveness of the US safety standard for child resistant cigarette lighters. (Original Article).
September 1, 2002... Objective: The purpose of this research is to evaluate the effectiveness of the US Consumer Product Safety Commission's (CPSC) Safety Standard for Cigarette Lighters, which requires that disposable cigarette lighters be resistant to operation...

What distinguishes unintentional injuries from injuries due to intimate partner violence: a study in Greek ambulatory care settings. (Original Article).
September 1, 2002... Objectives: Intimate partner violence (IPV) is an important sociocultural and public health problem. This study aims to assess sociodemographic and injury characteristics of IPV victims among adults in a traditional southern European...

Hip protector compliance among older people living in residential care homes. (Original Article).
September 1, 2002... Objectives: To estimate the compliance rates for the use of hip protectors among people living in residential care homes. Population/setting: People aged 65 years and over living in residential care homes with 20 or more beds in East Kent,...

Characteristics of pregnant women in motor vehicle crashes. (Original Article).
September 1, 2002... Objectives: Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of hospitalized trauma during pregnancy. Maternal injury puts the fetus at great risk, yet little is known about the incidence, risks, and characteristics of pregnant women in crashes. ...

Injury prevention contributor wins Ig Nobel Award. (Lacunae).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... One of our reviewers and occasional contributor, Peter Barss, a professor in the Department of Epidemiology at McGill, was the recipient of this year's Ig Nobel Prize for his pioneering research on "Injuries due to falling coconuts". Although...

Glamorizing hazards. (Lacunae).
September 1, 2002... Occasionally, an advertisement will disturb the safety conscious consumer. Perhaps it grabs attention by glamorizing a risky activity or depicting a dangerous location. It might show people biking, snowboarding, or driving without the proper...

Trends in road injuy hospitalisation rates for Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people in Western Australia, 1971-97. (Original Article).
September 1, 2002... Objective: To examine trends in road injury hospitalisation rates for Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people in Western Australia. Methods: Data from the Western Australian Hospital Morbidity Data System for the years between 1971 and 1997...

Pediatric motor vehicle related injuries in the Navajo Nation: the impact of the 1988 child occupant restraint laws. (Original Article).
September 1, 2002... Background: Navajo motor vehicle mortality is the highest among the 12 Indian Health Service (IHS) administrative areas. In July 1988, the Navajo Notion enacted a primary enforcement safety belt use and a child restraint law. Objective:...

Board member biography.(Brief Article)(Biography)
September 1, 2002... Richard J. Waxweiler, PhD, MSIE Dr Waxweiler received his bachelor's and master's degrees in engineering from the University of Michigan and a doctorate in epidemiology from the University of North Carolina. His career at the Centers for...

Drinking histories of fatally injured drivers. (Original Article).
September 1, 2002... Context: About 30% of drivers killed in crashes have high blood alcohol concentrations (BACs) of 0.10+ g/dl. There is a question about whether these drivers primarily are problem drinkers who chronically drink and drive--the so-called hard core...

Prevalence of youth access to alcohol or a gun in the home. (Original Article).
September 1, 2002... Objectives: To estimate the national prevalence of youth access to alcohol, a gun, or both alcohol and a gun, in their home and to describe the demographic characteristics associated with access to either alcohol or a gun. Methods: Cross...

Iranian road deaths. (Lacunae).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... In the deadliest day of road accidents in Iran, 122 people died, and 1855 were injured yesterday in more than 900 different accidents, state run Tehran television reported. The broadcast said that such a high number of traffic casualties was...

Dog mauling convictions. (Lacunae).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... A San Francisco couple were found guilty in March of the death of a neighbour, who was fatally mauled by the couple's dog in their apartment building in 2001. One person was found guilty of second degree murder, involuntary manslaughter, and...

Exposure to traffic among urban children injured as pedestrians. (Original Article).
September 1, 2002... Objectives: To explore the immediate pre-crash activities and the routine traffic exposure (street crossing and play) in a sample of urban children struck by automobiles. In particular, the traffic exposure of children who were struck while...

Learner drivers--move on safety, for testers. (Lacunae).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Reuters reports that French driving students may have to wait for 24 hours before finding out whether they have passed their driving test. The measure is being considered as a means of protecting examiners who fail the students from assault and...

Simulating a shaken baby. (Lacunae).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... University of Queensland researchers are developing a computerised tool to give courts key evidence in shaken baby cases. Paediatric ophthalmologist, Dr Denis Stark, says that damage to the eyes, particularly retinal haemorrhage, is a key...

Report on parachuting incident. (Lacunae).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... The Australian Transport Safety Bureau has released a report into an incident in which a parachutist died and only fast and brave action by a pilot prevented more deaths. In April 2001, a Cessna Caravan carrying 10 parachutists, a camera...

Do criminals go to the hospital when they are shot? (Brief Report).
September 1, 2002... Objectives: To determine whether criminals go to the hospital when they are shot. Such information is needed to check on the accuracy of using hospital emergency room data to estimate non-fatal gunshot wounds. Setting: Five jails across the...

Are squash players protecting their eyes? (Brief Report).
September 1, 2002... Objective: To determine factors associated with adult squash players' protective eyewear behaviours. Methods: A survey of 303 players (aged [greater than or equal to] 18 years) was conducted at three squash venues in Melbourne, Australia...

Association between the inception of a SAFE KIDS Coalition and changes in pediatric unitentional injury rates. (Featured Program Evaluation).
September 1, 2002... Objective: To assess the relationship between the implementation of a SAFE KIDS Coalition and pediatric unintentional injury rates. Setting: Shelby County, Tennessee. Design: Retrospective observational analysis. Patients: County...

Recording of community violence by medical and police services. (Methodologic Issues).
September 1, 2002... Objectives: To determine the extent to which community violence that results in injury treated in emergency departments appears in official police records and to identify age/gender groups at particular risk of under-recording by the police....

How old is that child? Validating the accuracy of age assignments in observational surveys of vehicle restraint use. (Methodologic Issues).
September 1, 2002... Objectives: Many large scale observational studies of child restraint usage require observers to estimate the ages of the vehicle occupants. The accuracy of age assignments were assessed and possible methods to improve observational accuracy in...

Don't open indoors. (Lacunae).(accidental death)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... A Malaysian air force technician was killed when the ejector seat of a fighter jet went off by mistake inside a hangar, rocketing him into the ceiling, military officials said. The technician was demonstrating the seat in a British made Hawk...

Slam-dunk injuries and deaths. (Lacunae).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... There have been three deaths and a number of hospital treated cases of injuries in Victoria, Australia, where the victims have swung from a basketball hoop (slam-dunked) and pulled the basketball ring and the fabric (usually brickwork), to...

Walk to school--safely. (Lacunae).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... One in four Australian kids are overweight. But rather than just talking about it, the Queensland University of Technology is doing something to stop the trend. They've developed a Walk-to-School program that kids actually like doing (ABC...

Underestimates of unintentional firearm fatalities: comparing Supplementary Homicide Report data with the National Vital Statistics System. (Methodologic Issues).
September 1, 2002... Objective: A growing body of evidence suggests that the nation's vital statistics system undercounts unintentional firearm deaths that are not self inflicted. This issue was examined by comparing how unintentional firearm injuries identified in...

Evaluation of the THINK FIRST for KIDS injury prevention curriculum for primary students. (Research Letter).
September 1, 2002... THINK FIRST is a national non-profit organization whose mission is to educate young people about the prevention of brain and spinal cord injuries. This paper describes a study conducted by THINK FIRST of Oregon on one of its injury prevention...

Letters.(Letter to the Editor)
September 1, 2002... The Barell matrix In the latest issue of Injury Prevention we were pleased to note that an editorial had been written about the Barell matrix. (1) Unfortunately, the editorial gives the reader the impression that the Barell matrix is one...

Calendar.(Calendar)
September 1, 2002... European Child Safety Alliance Workshop 10-12 October 2002, Sintra, Portugal. The European Child Safety Alliance is running a workshop What works in Child Injury Prevention: Bridging the Gap between Research and Practice. The intention of...

Cochrane Injuries Group. (Splinters & Fragments).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... The Cochrane Injuries Group estimates that each year more than a million people die worldwide and perhaps 10 million are permanently disabled in traffic crashes. The British Medical Journal has released a special theme issue: "War on the...

Researchers at Children's Hospital. (Splinters & Fragments).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... What happens after children are injured in traffic crashes? Researchers at Children's Hospital in Philadelphia interviewed children who were hospitalized for treatment of traffic crash related injuries and their parents. More than 80% of...

International symposium. (Splinters & Fragments).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Sports related concussions occur regularly in popular activities such as football, soccer, and ice hockey. An international symposium held November 2001 in Vienna, Austria, has resulted in a Concussion in Sport Group paper that is available for...

African Newsletter on Occupational Health and Safety. (Splinters & Fragments).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Another "special issue" focuses on violence at work. This edition of the African Newsletter on Occupational Health and Safety includes articles on violence against women, the global response to workplace violence, and international prevention...

Northern Territory of Australia. (Splinters & Fragments).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... The "top end" of the Northern Territory of Australia has no speed limit in non-urban areas. It is an area with light traffic, long distances to drive, and "relatively high use of alcohol". All of these factors add up to a high rate of single...

Trauma. (Splinters & Fragments).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Trauma among the elderly is often overlooked as we focus on the fact that, in the West, injury is the leading cause of death among the young. A recent analysis examined all elderly trauma patients presenting to Illinois trauma centers over...

Chinatowns. (Splinters & Fragments).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Many urban centers have "Chinatowns": dense, crowded with people and traffic, teeming with residents and tourists. Boston's Chinatown is surrounded by highways, including a major long term construction project. This article examines not only...

Australian Transport Safety Bureau. (Splinters & Fragments).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... One more on traffic injuries: the Australian Transport Safety Bureau has released a report on fatal injuries to young children in driveways. As in US studies (Agran et al), these deaths primarily involve toddlers, usually at their own homes....

European Union. (Splinters & Fragments).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Even very brief articles can contain a wealth of interesting data. These authors used the same methods to examine drowning deaths to United Kingdom children in 1988-89 and 1998-99 and found that deaths had decreased from 149 to 104. Beyond...

Reducing young driver crash risk: the future is bright for reducing teen crash risk. (Proceedings of an Expert Conference on Young Drivers).
September 1, 2002... Given the dominance of private motor vehicles as the primary mode of transportation in the United States, and the country's long romance with cars and roads, it is not surprising that obtaining a drivers license is an important milestone in the...

The safety value of driver education and training.
September 1, 2002... Background: New drivers, especially young ones, have extremely high crash rates. Formal instruction, which includes in-class education and in-vehicle training, has been used as a means to address this problem. Objectives: To summarize the...

Rationale for graduated licensing and the risks it should address.
September 1, 2002... The increased crash risk of young, beginning drivers has long been cause for concern. Graduated licensing systems, which seek to phase in driving experience gradually over time, have recently been adopted by many states in an effort to reduce...

Developmental sources of crash risk in young drivers.
September 1, 2002... Objective: To outline various sources of crash risk among young drivers that are developmental (age based) factors. Methods and Results: First, a distinction is made between adolescence (ages 10-18) and emerging adulthood (ages 18-25) in...

Promoting parental management of teen driving.
September 1, 2002... Objective: Parenting may be an important protective factor against teen driving risk; however, parents do not limit teen driving as much as might be expected. The Checkpoint Program was designed to promote parental management of teen driving...

Graduated driver licensing: what works?
September 1, 2002... Background: Graduated driver licensing (GDL) adds an intermediate stage to driver licensing between the learner permit and full licensure stages that is intended to ameliorate the high risk of novice drivers. Objectives: To assess the...

The case for a 0.05% criminal law blood alcohol concentration limit for driving.
September 1, 2002... Canada established its current 0.08% Criminal Code blood alcohol concentration (BAC) limit for drivers in 1969*. (1 2) At the time, this was a substantial improvement, as it established a per se BAC limit under the criminal law and required...