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. 2022 May;42(5):199-208.
doi: 10.24095/hpcdp.42.5.03.

Self-reported injuries among Canadian adolescents: rates and key correlates

[Article in English, French]
Kathleen MacNabb  1 , Nathan Smith  1 , Alysia Robinson  1 , Gabriela Ilie  1 , Mark Asbridge  1
Affiliations

Self-reported injuries among Canadian adolescents: rates and key correlates

[Article in English, French]
Kathleen MacNabb et al. Health Promot Chronic Dis Prev Can. 2022 May.

Abstract
in English, French

Introduction: Injuries sustained by adolescents in Canada represent a costly public health issue. Much of the limited research in this area uses administrative data, which underestimate injury prevalence by ignoring injuries that are not treated by the health care system. Self-reported data provide population-based estimates and include contextual information that can be used to identify injury correlates and possible targets for public health interventions aimed at decreased injury burden.

Methods: The 2017 wave of the Canadian Community Health Survey was used to calculate the prevalence of self-reported total, intentional and unintentional injuries. We compared injury prevalence according to age, sex, employment status, presence of a mood disorder, presence of an anxiety disorder, smoking and binge drinking. Analyses were performed using logistic regression to identify significantly different injury prevalence estimates across key correlates.

Results: Overall past-12-month injury prevalence among adolescents living in Canada was 31.4% (95% CI: 29.4%-33.5%). Most injuries were unintentional. All provinces had estimates within a few percentage points, except Saskatchewan, which had substantially higher prevalence for both overall and unintentional injury. Smoking and binge drinking were significantly associated with higher injury prevalence in most jurisdictions. Remaining correlates exhibited nonsignificant or inconsistent associations with injury prevalence.

Conclusion: The data suggest that injury prevention interventions aimed at reducing alcohol consumption, particularly binge drinking, may be effective in reducing adolescent injury across Canada. Future research is needed to determine how provincial context (such as mental health support for adolescents or programs and policies aimed at reducing substance use) impacts injury rates.

Introduction: Les blessures subies par les adolescents au Canada constituent un pro­blème de santé publique coûteux. Les recherches, limitées, qui ont été faites dans ce domaine reposent en grande partie sur des données administratives, qui sous-estiment la prévalence des blessures en omettant celles qui ne sont pas traitées par le système de santé. Les données autodéclarées fournissent des estimations à l’échelle de la population et comprennent des informations contextuelles utilisables pour déterminer les corrélats des blessures et les cibles possibles d’interventions en santé publique visant à réduire le fardeau des blessures.

Méthodologie: À l’aide des données de la vague de 2017 de l’Enquête sur la santé dans les collectivités canadiennes, nous avons calculé la prévalence des blessures autodéclarées, globalement et en fonction de leur caractère intentionnel ou non. Nous avons comparé la prévalence des blessures en fonction de l’âge, du sexe, de l’activité profes­sionnelle, de la présence d’un trouble de l’humeur, de la présence d’un trouble d’anxiété, du tabagisme et de la consommation excessive d’alcool. Nous avons effectué les analyses à l’aide d’une régression logistique en vue d’établir les principaux corrélats pour lesquels les estimations de la prévalence sont significativement différentes.

Résultats: La prévalence globale des blessures subies au cours des 12 derniers mois précédant l’enquête chez les adolescents vivant au Canada était de 31,4 % (IC à 95 % : 29,4 % à 33,5 %). La plupart des blessures n’étaient pas intentionnelles. Quelques points de pourcentage seulement séparaient les estimations correspondant aux différentes provinces, à l’exception de la Saskatchewan, où la prévalence était nettement plus élevée pour l’ensemble des blessures et pour les blessures non intentionnelles. Le tabagisme et la consommation excessive d’alcool ont été significativement associés à une plus grande prévalence des blessures dans la plupart des provinces. Les autres corrélats présentaient des associations non significatives ou inconsistantes avec la prévalence des blessures.

Conclusion: D’après les données, les interventions de prévention des blessures visant à réduire la consommation d’alcool, en particulier la consommation excessive d’alcool, seraient efficaces pour réduire les blessures chez les adolescents au Canada. D’autres recherches seront nécessaires pour déterminer comment le contexte provincial (comme le soutien en santé mentale pour les adolescents ou les programmes et politiques visant à réduire la consommation de substances) a un effet sur les taux de blessures.

Keywords: Canada; adolescent; binge drinking; cross-sectional studies; injuries; smoking; wounds.

Plain language summary

Self-reported data from a population-based dataset offer insight into the “hidden figure” of adolescent injury in Canada. Approximately 31% of adolescents aged 12 to 19 years in southern Canada reported having sustained an injury serious enough to limit their normal activities or to require medical care in the previous year. Most injuries were unintentional. Public health interventions that target adolescent alcohol consumption will likely reduce injury burden. Saskatchewan had a substantially greater prevalence of self-reported injury than other provinces.

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Conflict of interest statement

None to declare.

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