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Late last year, I wrote about the various common sense ways you can avoid deadly and unintentional household tragedies. From the numbers I read today in a CDC report, however, not very many people got the message...
An astonishing 18 people die AN HOUR due to injuries in the U.S., according to the first government report of its kind on fatal and non-fatal injuries. That translated into 157,000 people in 2001, with no age group, gender or race exempt.
Other important facts from the report:
- About one in six U.S. residents requires medical treatment for an injury.
- One in 10 visits a hospital emergency room for such an injury.
- Unintentional injury is the fifth leading cause of death in this country, with traumatic brain injuries leading the pack.
- The medical care for those fatal and non-fatal injuries costs an estimated $117 billion annually.
- Unintentional falls were the leading nonfatal injury treated in emergency rooms, with 7.8 million cases. Falls also accounted for 15,000 deaths.
Forbes September 3, 2004