CDC: Parent-reported head injuries in 7.0 percent of children
(HealthDay)—In 2016, 8.3 percent of boys and 5.6 percent of girls aged 3 to 17 years had ever had a significant head injury in their lifetime, according to a February data brief published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics.
Lindsey I. Black, M.P.H., from the National Center for Health Statistics in Hyattsville, Md., and colleagues present estimates of parent-reported lifetime significant head injuries among children aged 3 to 17 years using data from the National Health Interview Survey.
The researchers found that 7.0 percent of children (8.3 and 5.6 percent of boys and girls, respectively) aged 3 to 17 years have ever had a significant head injury in their lifetime, based on parental report in 2016. The percentage of children who have ever had a significant head injury also increased as age increased, peaking at 11.7 percent among 15-to-17-year-old children. Compared with non-Hispanic black, Hispanic, and other non-Hispanic children, non-Hispanic white children were more likely to have ever had a significant head injury. The majority of children who had ever had a head injury had only had one such injury (81.3 percent).
"This report provides insight into the demographic differences in the prevalence of a lifetime significant head injury among children aged 3 to 17 years," the authors write.
More information: Abstract/Full Text
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