Epidemiology of Accidents Among Children in Preschool, Fifth Grade, and Ninth Grade

Objectives: To describe accidents and the circumstances under which they occur among school-age children. Subjects, materials, and methods: A standardized questionnaire on accident occurrence was administered to representative samples from mainland France, in the final year of preschool (GSM, 22,000 students) in 2005 6, in CM2 (7,000) in 2004 5, and in 9th grade (7,000) in 2003 4. Main results: Over a 3-month period, 4% of GSM students, 9% of CM2 students, and 9% of 9th graders reported an accident. Traffic accidents accounted for 15% of cases in 9th grade, and 3–4% in kindergarten and 5th grade. Between 21% and 24% of injuries were fractures; sprains increased with age: 8%, 33%, and 46%. The body parts most frequently affected were the head among first graders (58%), and the lower limbs among fifth graders and ninth graders (41% and 47%). Among the risk factors identified were: parents’ occupation or unemployment, school district; outdoor play, screen time, participation in sports; being a boy, having asthma. Conclusions: Obtained from captive populations in different grade levels, these results provide a better understanding of the circumstances surrounding accidents among children. Trends over time can be established using the 2008–09, 2012–13, and 2014–15 surveys, which used the same questionnaire. (R.A.)

Author(s): Perrine AL, Menard E, Thelot B

Publishing year: 2014

Pages: p.704

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