(RoyalPatriot.com )- Injuries other than those caused by infectious diseases have contributed significantly to the over 20% rise in the mortality rate among American children and adolescents over the last two years.
Statistics compiled and published by the JAMA Network of the American Medical Association show a 10.7 percent increase in all-cause death rates among Americans aged 1 to 19 between 2019 and 2020. Then, between 2020 and 2021, there was a surge of 8.3 percent. The rise in deaths from all causes between 2019 and 2021 was 19%, the highest in at least 50 years. After considerable achievement in decreasing pediatric death rates, “these rises, the greatest in decades,” the editorial said.
Deaths from injuries increased by 2.80 per 100,000 people in 2020, but fatalities from infectious diseases were at a much lower 0.24 per 100,000.
Deaths from injuries increased by 22.6% between 2019 and 2020 among adolescents and young adults (10–19 years old), driven mainly by increases in murder (39.1%) and drug overdose (113.5%). Most of the rise in the overall death rate among children aged 1 to 9 years in 2021 was due to injuries.
The editorial argues that deaths due to injuries have been on the rise for some time. For instance, the incidence of suicides committed by people aged 10–19 has been on the rise since 2007, while the rate of homicides has been rising since 2013.
Suicide caused 69.5% more deaths than any other cause between 2007 and 2019. The murder rate has grown by 32.7% between 2013 and 2019. The editorial said that the “deepening” mental health problem and the availability of weapons were to blame for the rise in suicide and murder rates.
In 2020, accidental injuries were the most significant cause of mortality among children, accounting for 12.5% of fatalities among those less than 12 and 31.4% of deaths among those 12-17 years old, according to statistics from the National Center for Health Statistics.
Children’s attempted suicide by poisoning increased by 26.7% between 2015 and 2020, according to data gathered from the National Poison Data System.
“We need to be watchful for the warning indicators linked with suicide risk in our children,” said Dr. Christopher Holstege, chairman of the division of medical toxicology at the University of Virginia School of Medicine.
Being one of many recent studies showing the severity of the mental health problem affecting the young, we can confidently say that “our research is one of several that proves” this. More funding for children’s mental health is a social responsibility.
