Common Injuries

Children are consistently moving and are more likely to sustain injuries as they grow into adolescents. There are many common injuries that children are more than likely to sustain than others. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention a few of the most common injuries in children are:

·         Falls

·         Burns

·         Drowning

·         Poisoning

·         Suffocation

·         Transportation

Some of these injuries on this list may cause nonfatal injuries, but they could also be fatal injuries. If the injuries are nonfatal, they are not usually as serious as fatal injuries. Males children are more commonly known to sustain nonfatal injuries than female children. The most common nonfatal injury is a “fall.” “Falls was the leading cause of nonfatal injury for all age groups less than 15” (Borse, et al., 2015). Along with falls, other nonfatal injuries that were common were animal bites or insect bites, and being struck by an object were the next highest.

If these injuries become fatal they could also be the main cause of some children’s deaths. It is sad to say that “About 20 children die every day from a preventable injury” (Borse, et al., 2015). Each year, among those 0 to 19 years of age, more than 12,000 people die from unintentional injuries and more than 9.2 million are treated in emergency departments for nonfatal injuries (Borse, et al., 2015).  As said before male children are more commonly known to sustain these common injuries than female children. The most common injury that leads to a child’s death is from transportation. Along with transportation, suffocation and drowning were the next most common injuries to end in death.
According to the Baby Center there are a few other nonfatal common childhood injuries that have not been mentioned. Those include: nose injuries, items stuck in nostril or ear, pulled elbow, eye injuries, cuts and scratches and bites.  Some of these injuries can be shocking to new parents, but they happen all the time.
Nose injuries can happen easily when the nose is hit from falling, fighting or being hit in the face. This can also happen when a child sticks rocks, peas, or beads in their nose, but this can also happen in the ears. Bites can be a common injury especially when they come from animals, insects and even another child. A child’s elbow may be pulled if a child is being picked up by one arm or by swinging. Lastly are cuts and scratches, these are the most common because children easily can fall from running, tripping or falling from a bike or skateboard.
These common injuries can all be prevented. Parents, caregivers, grandparents and anyone who is around children need to know what can be used to prevent these injuries. Young children should not be left alone around water or things that are hot. Small objects should also not be around young children. Children who ride bikes, skateboards, rollerblades, scooters and even ATVS etc., should all always wear a helmet and should wear elbow and knee and pads until they feel comfortable without them. Children should also always be accompanied by an adult when swimming whether in a pool, lake, or ocean (Advice and support, 2015).

Advice and support on pregnancy and parenting. (2015, April). Retrieved February 26, 2017,

from http://www.babycenter.com/

Borse, N. N., Gilchrist, J., Dellinger, A. M., Rudd, R. A., Ballesteros, M. F., & Sleet, D. A.

(2015, December 23). CDC Childhood Injury Report. Retrieved February 26, 2017, from

https://www.cdc.gov/safechild/child_injury_data.html