One of Top Three Causes of Unintentional Injury Deaths
Unintentional injuries represent a set within a larger set of injuries that lead to deaths. According to ICD (International Classification of Disease), unintentional injuries contribute significantly to the causes of deaths (Murphy, Xu & Kochanek, 2013). They fall within a set of external causes of injury, and they result from various agents like crashes of motor vehicles, drowning, poisoning, and firearms (CDC, 2009).
The crash of motor vehicle represents the top three causes of unintentional deaths, particularly in California where it accounts for 36.2% of all unintentional deaths that occurred between the year 2000 and 2010 (State, 2010). Unintentional injuries have been the leading causes of deaths in the United States and California. However, the cause of unintentional injury, and consequently, deaths depend on various factors such as age. NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) statistics shows that motor vehicle accidents account for the majority of deaths of people between 5 and 24 years (Liu, Singh, & Subramanian, 2015).
Unintentional deaths due to traffic crashes affect more males than females. Males are the frequent users of motor vehicles. According to the U.S transport department, there is a significant difference between the number of male deaths as a result of traffic crashes and females. For example, in 2011, motor deaths from motor vehicle injuries were ranked number nine among males and 14 among females (Liu, Singh, & Subramanian, 2015).
Motor vehicle injuries, compared to other causes of unintentional injuries tend to be the most prevalent. For example, if we compare the degree of intent between traffic injuries and poisoning, poisoning will tend to have a high degree of intention compared to traffic crashes. As such, the number of deaths will be less. Traffic injuries that result from alcohol drinking are more likely to affect males than females. Therefore, unintentional deaths due to traffic injuries affect males more than females.
References
CDC. (2009). Injury Data and Resources - ICD Injury Matrices. Retrieved June 15, 2016, from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/injury/injury_matrices.htm
Liu, Y., Singh, S., & Subramanian, R. (2015, October). Motor vehicle traffic crashes as a leading cause of death in the United States, 2010 and 2011. (Traffic Safety Facts Research Note. Report No. DOT HS 812 203). Washington, DC: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Murphy, S. L., Xu, J., & Kochanek, K. D. (2013). National vital statistics reports. National vital statistics reports, 61(4).
