Saving Lives and Protecting People from Injuries & Violence
- More than 180,000 people die from injuries each year — 1 person every 3 minutes1
- Injuries are the leading cause of death for people ages 1-44 in the US1
- Injuries cost more than $406 billion annually in medical care and lost productivity2
Injury Topics
- Saving Lives and Protecting People
- Key Data & Statistics,
- Worldwide Injuries & Violence,
- About Us...
- Home & Recreational Safety
- Older Adult Falls,
- Fires,
- Poisoning...
- Traumatic Brain Injury
- Brain Injury, Concussion, Concussion in Sports...
- Funded Programs
- Funding by Program & State, Extramural Research, FOAs...
- Violence Prevention
- Child Maltreatment,
- Sexual Violence,
- Suicide,
- Intimate Partner Violence,
- Youth Violence...
- Motor Vehicle Safety
- Impaired Driving,
- Child Passenger Safety,
- Teen Drivers...
- Injury Response
- Blast and Explosion Injuries,
- Acute Injury Care,
- Alcohol Screening...
- Data and Statistics
- WISQARSTM and other injury data resources...
Injury: The Leading Cause of Death Among Persons 1-44
Injury Deaths Compared to Other Leading Causes of Death for Persons Ages 1-44, United States, 2007*
Injury Center Focus Areas
Motor Vehicle-Related Injury Prevention
In 2009: Nearly 34,000 people in the U.S died in a motor vehicle crash.3 Nearly 11,000 people died at the hands of alcohol-impaired drivers.4 More than 12,000 of the drivers and passengers killed were not wearing seat belts or other restraints.3
Prevention of Violence Against Children and Youth
In 2008: More than 1,700 children ages 0 to 17 died from child abuse and neglect—80% of deaths occurred among children younger than age 4.5 Nearly 5,500 young people ages 10 to 24 were murdered—an average of 15 each day—making youth violence the second leading cause of death for this age group.1
Prevention of Prescription Painkiller Overdose
Overdoses of prescription painkillers have more than tripled in the past 20 years, leading to 14,800 deaths in the United States in 2008.6,7 Overdose deaths are only part of the problem—for each death involving prescription painkillers, hundreds of people abuse or misuse these drugs.6
Prevention of Traumatic Brain Injury
Every year, 1.7 million people sustain a TBI.8 In the U.S.: At least 3 people sustain a TBI every minute.1 5.3 million people live with disabilities caused by a TBI.6 In one year alone, TBIs cost Americans $76.5 billion in medical care, rehabilitation, and loss of work.9,10
References
- NCIPC: Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS) http://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars.
- Finkelstein EA, Corso PS, Miller TR, Associates. Incidence and economic burden of injuries in the United States. New York, NY: Oxford University Press; 2006.
- U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Traffic Safety Facts: Highlights of 2009 Motor Vehicle Crashes. Table 5. Washington (DC): NHTSA; 2010. [accessed 2001 Dec 14]. Available from: http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811363.PDF
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Drinking and Driving: A Threat to Everyone. [updated 2011 Oct 4; accessed 2011 Nov 1]. Available from: http://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/drinkinganddriving/?s_cid=vitalsigns-092-bb.
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration on Children, Youth and Families. Child Maltreatment 2008. Washington (DC): U.S. Government Printing Office, 2010. [accessed 2011 Dec 29]. Available from: http://www.acf.hhs.gov.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Vital Signs: Overdoses of Prescription Opioid Pain Relievers—United States, 1999–2008. MMWR 2011; 60: 1–6.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Vital Signs: Prescription Painkiller Overdoses in the U.S. (November 2011)[accessed 2011 Nov 1]. Available from: http://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/PainkillerOverdoses/index.html
- Faul M, Xu L, Wald MM, Coronado VG. Traumatic brain injury in the United States: emergency department visits, hospitalizations, and deaths. Atlanta (GA): Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control; 2010. Also see Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. How Many People Have TBI? [updated 2011 May 5; accessed 2011 Nov 1]. Available from: http://www.cdc.gov/traumaticbraininjury/statistics.html
- Finkelstein EA, Corso PS, Miller TR. The Incidence and Economic Burden of Injuries in the United States. New York (NY): Oxford University Press; 2006.
- Coronado VG, McGuire LC, Faul M, Sugerman D, Pearson W. The Epidemiology and Prevention of TBI (in press). 2012
*Note: Injury includes unintentional injury, homicide, suicide, legal intervention, and those of undetermined intent. Non-communicable diseases include cancer, cardiovascular, kidney, respiratory, liver, diabetes, and other diseases. Infectious diseases include HIV, influenza, pneumonia, tuberculosis, and other infectious diseases. Data Source: National Vital Statistics System using CDC Wonder (http://wonder.cdc.gov).
Get email updates
To receive email updates about this page, enter your email address:
Contact Us:
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC)
4770 Buford Hwy, NE
MS F-63
Atlanta, GA 30341-3717 - 800-CDC-INFO
(800-232-4636)
TTY: (888) 232-6348
New Hours of Operation:
8am-8pm ET/
Monday-Friday
Closed Holidays - cdcinfo@cdc.gov