Search

To explore the National Fatality Review Case Reporting System (NFR-CRS) as a new data source to (1) characterize pediatric vehicular heatstroke (PVH) deaths among children <15 years of age reviewed by Child Death Review teams, and (2) identify factors independently associated with common PVH scenarios and incident locations. Data for 2005–2019 were used to characterize 296 PVH deaths. Frequencies and percentages were calculated to describe child, supervisor, and incident characteristics. Multiple logistic regression with and without imputation were carried out to identify factors associated with the two outcomes of interest: PVH scenario (left in vehicle vs. gained access) and incident place (supervisor workplace vs. other locations). Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals (OR, 95% CI) were calculated. Most children had been left unattended in vehicles (N = 225, 76.0%) and 13.5% (N = 40) had gained access independently. Children were most often male (N = 168, 56.8%), non-Hispanic White (N = 131, 44.3%), and <2 years of age (N = 172, 58.1%). Disability or chronic illness was noted for 4.7% (N = 14), 13.9% (N = 41) had a history of maltreatment, and 6.1% (N = 18) an open CPS case at the time of incident. Children left unattended were more likely to be <2 years of age (adjusted imputed OR 26.7, CI 7.3–97.2) and less likely to have an open CPS case (0.2, 0.0–0.4) and for the incident to occur at home (0.2, 0.1–0.9) compared to children who gained access. PVH deaths occurring at the supervisor's workplace were more likely to be <2 years of age (6.2, 2.4–15.8), to have occurred on a weekday (5.9, 1.7–20.9), and to have been supervised by their parent at the incident time (2.7, 1.1–6.7) compared to other locations. The results align with previous PVH findings and added new information on child race/ethnicity, CPS action, disability/chronic illness, and maltreatment. With the exception of parents being more likely to be the supervisor in incidents occurring at home, which was expected, neither supervisor characteristics nor child race/ethnicity or sex were independently significant in multiple regression, suggesting that PVH is pervasive and that education campaigns should be similarly broad. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Suicide is a leading cause of death among children in the United States; firearms cause 37% of these deaths. Research is needed to better understand firearm accessibility among youth at risk for suicide. We reviewed data from the National Fatality Review Case Reporting System (NFR-CRS). Firearm suicide deaths of children ages 10-18 occurring 2004 through 2015 with completed suicide-specific section were included. Children who had talked about, threatened or attempted suicide were identified as 'Greater Risk' (GR). Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) were calculated. Of the 2106 firearm suicide deaths, 1388 (66%) had a completed NFR-CRS suicide section. Of these, 36% (494/1388) met the criteria for GR. Firearms were less likely to be stored in a locked location for GR children [adjusted OR 0.62, (95%CI 0.49-0.98)]. Strategies to limit firearm access, particularly for GR youth, should be a focus of suicide prevention efforts., Author(s): Patricia G. Schnitzer [sup.1] , Heather K. Dykstra [sup.1] , Theodore E. Trigylidas [sup.2] , Richard Lichenstein [sup.3] Author Affiliations: (Aff1) 0000 0001 0028 3686, grid.415507.2, National Center for [...]