Linda F. McCaig, MPH and Catharine W. Burt, EdD. Division of Health Care Statistics, National Center for Health Statistics/CDC, 3311 Toledo Road, Room 3409, Hyattsville, MD 20782, 3014584365, lfm1@cdc.gov

Purpose: To describe trends in injury-related hospital emergency department (ED) visit rates in children for selected diagnoses and causes of injury using data from the 1993-2002 National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Surveys (NHAMCS).

Methods: NHAMCS is an annual national probability survey of visits to emergency and outpatient departments of non-Federal, short-stay, and general US hospitals. The sample consisted of 400 hospitals with EDs each year. Patient records were completed for ~2,000 injury ED visits among children < 15 years, each year. Data were weighted to produce national estimates. Two years of data (1993/94, 1995/96, 1997/98, 1999/2000, 2001/02) were combined to provide more reliable estimates. Trends in selected injury diagnosis groups and causes of injury were analyzed.

Results: Each year, children make about 8 million injury-related ED visits. From 1993/94-2001/02, no trend was found in the overall injury ED visit rate for children (~140 visits per 1,000 population); however, decreasing trends were observed for the following diagnoses: intracranial injury (down 82%); poisoning (down 43%); open wounds, excluding head (down 32%), and open head wounds (down 26%). Trends were found for the following unintentional causes: poisoning (down 42%); dog bites (down 38%); cutting/piercing instrument (down 28%); struck/by against (up 25%); and overall (down by 17%).

Conclusions: NHAMCS is an effective tool for monitoring trends in injury-related ED visits. Significant declines found for selected diagnoses in children are encouraging and may reflect real reductions in injury incidence; however, further intervention strategies may be needed for injuries caused by striking unintentionally by objects/persons.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant (learner) in this session will be able to

• List four injury-related diagnosis groups and three causes of injury recorded at emergency department visits among children in the US that have decreased from 1993-2002 and one cause of injury that has increased.
• Describe how the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey can be used to conduct injury surveillance.
• Discuss which intervention strategies have been effective and which strategies might need to be reevaluated.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.