Prevalence and correlates of handgun access among adolescents seeking care in an urban emergency department

Loh, Kevin; Walton, Maureen A.; Harrison, Stephanie R; Zimmerman, Marc A.; Stanley, Rachel; Chermack, Stephen T.; Cunningham, Rebecca M.

doi:10.1016/j.aap.2009.11.012

Cited by 26 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 59 publications

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“…Previous communitybased adolescent firearm prevalence studies have focused primarily on high school-based samples [34][35][36][37][38] and may neglect higher risk youth who do not attend school. 29,39,40 Previous ED-based samples 30,41 have focused on all adolescents regardless of presenting complaint, and lacked information about firearm acquisition, type, or motivation for possession. No previous studies have focused specifically on firearm possession among high-risk ED assault-injured youth, a critical subgroup to understand for future violence-prevention initiatives.…”

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confidence: 99%

Firearm Possession Among Adolescents Presenting to an Urban Emergency Department for Assault

et al. 2013

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WHAT'S KNOWN ON THIS SUBJECT: Violence involving firearms is a leading cause of death among US youth ages 14 to 24. The emergency department is the primary medical setting for care of assault-injured youth and an underused but important setting for violence-prevention programs.WHAT THIS STUDY ADDS: Among assault-injured youth seeking emergency department care, firearm possession rates are high, most obtained outside of legal channels. Higher rates of negative retaliatory attitudes and substance use among those youth with firearms increases risk of future lethal violence. abstract BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Firearm violence is a leading cause of death among youth. The objectives of this study were (1) determine firearm possession rates and associated correlates among youth seeking care for assault in an emergency department (ED); (2) understand differences in risk factors for youth with firearm possession; and (3) identify firearm possession characteristics in this population: type, reason for possession, and source of firearms. METHODS:Youth (14 to 24 years old) presenting to a Level 1 ED with assault were administered a computerized screening survey. Validated instruments were administered, measuring demographics, firearm rates and characteristics, attitudes toward aggression, substance use, and previous violence history.RESULTS: Among 689 assault-injured youth, 23% reported firearm possession in the past 6 months. Only 17% of those reporting firearm possession obtained the gun from a legal source; 22% reported ownership of highly lethal automatic/semiautomatic weapons and 37.1% reported having a firearm for protection. Logistic regression analysis identified significant correlates of firearm possession, including male gender, higher socioeconomic status, illicit drug use, recent serious fight, and retaliatory attitudes.CONCLUSIONS: ED assault-injured youth had high rates of firearm possession (23.1%), most of which were not obtained from legal sources. Youth with firearm possession were more likely to have been in a recent serious fight, and to endorse aggressive attitudes that increase their risk for retaliatory violence. Future prevention efforts should focus on minimizing illegal firearm access among high-risk youth, nonviolent alternatives to retaliatory violence, and substance use prevention. Dr Carter carried out the analyses, drafted the manuscript, and reviewed and revised the manuscript; Drs Walton and Zimmerman were responsible for the initial conceptualization and design of the study, design of data collection elements, and reviewed and revised the manuscript; Drs Newton and Whiteside assisted with the analysis, drafting of the manuscript, and critical review of the manuscript; Mr Clery assisted with the drafting of the manuscript and critical review of the manuscript; Dr Cunningham was responsible for the initial conceptualization and design of the study, design of data collection elements, aided in the analysis, and reviewed and revised the manuscript; and all authors approved the final manuscript...

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Firearm Possession Among Adolescents Presenting to an Urban Emergency Department for Assault

et al. 2013

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“…Direct literature comparisons are limited because this longitudinal study, to our knowledge, is the first to comprehensively characterize such a broad range of firearm violence outcomes among a systematically sampled cohort of assault-injured youth. Observed rates of firearm behaviors, however, are higher than those in national adolescent samples, 50,51 as well as in previous ED-and school-based studies that have focused on either violent injury recidivism 19,[52][53][54] or examined surrogate markers (eg, firearm possession/carriage; severe peer violence) 13,46,55,56 for firearm violence. Our results highlight that an ED assault-injury visit is an important indicator of future firearm violence risk and emphasize the substantial need for evidence-based interventions addressing this risk.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 68%

Firearm Violence Among High-Risk Emergency Department Youth After an Assault Injury

2015

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“…31,41,64 The high rates of firearm possession in this population, combined with the finding that assaulted youth with firearms had higher rates of retaliatory attitudes and substance use, highlight the importance of focusing ED and community violence prevention interventions among this subgroup. Most firearms in our study were likely obtained illegally, with almost a quarter of the sample endorsing ownership of automatic/ semiautomatic weapons that are largeclip, high rate-of-fire weapons, or may be modified to these highly lethal weapon types (ownership of guns for target shooting or hunting was excluded).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…39,41,64,66 It is important to note, however, that 30% of youth with firearms were female, highlighting the need to include both genders in injuryprevention efforts. Of note, and contrary to previous ED studies, youth with higher SES status were more likely to own a gun.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Firearm Possession Among Adolescents Presenting to an Urban Emergency Department for Assault

2013

PEDIATRICS

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WHAT'S KNOWN ON THIS SUBJECT: Violence involving firearms is a leading cause of death among US youth ages 14 to 24. The emergency department is the primary medical setting for care of assault-injured youth and an underused but important setting for violence-prevention programs.WHAT THIS STUDY ADDS: Among assault-injured youth seeking emergency department care, firearm possession rates are high, most obtained outside of legal channels. Higher rates of negative retaliatory attitudes and substance use among those youth with firearms increases risk of future lethal violence. abstract BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Firearm violence is a leading cause of death among youth. The objectives of this study were (1) determine firearm possession rates and associated correlates among youth seeking care for assault in an emergency department (ED); (2) understand differences in risk factors for youth with firearm possession; and (3) identify firearm possession characteristics in this population: type, reason for possession, and source of firearms. METHODS:Youth (14 to 24 years old) presenting to a Level 1 ED with assault were administered a computerized screening survey. Validated instruments were administered, measuring demographics, firearm rates and characteristics, attitudes toward aggression, substance use, and previous violence history. RESULTS:Among 689 assault-injured youth, 23% reported firearm possession in the past 6 months. Only 17% of those reporting firearm possession obtained the gun from a legal source; 22% reported ownership of highly lethal automatic/semiautomatic weapons and 37.1% reported having a firearm for protection. Logistic regression analysis identified significant correlates of firearm possession, including male gender, higher socioeconomic status, illicit drug use, recent serious fight, and retaliatory attitudes.CONCLUSIONS: ED assault-injured youth had high rates of firearm possession (23.1%), most of which were not obtained from legal sources. Youth with firearm possession were more likely to have been in a recent serious fight, and to endorse aggressive attitudes that increase their risk for retaliatory violence. Future prevention efforts should focus on minimizing illegal firearm access among high-risk youth, nonviolent alternatives to retaliatory violence, and substance use prevention. Pediatrics 2013;132:213-221 AUTHORS:

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Prevalence and correlates of handgun access among adolescents seeking care in an urban emergency department

Cited by 26 publications

References 59 publications

Firearm Possession Among Adolescents Presenting to an Urban Emergency Department for Assault

Firearm Possession Among Adolescents Presenting to an Urban Emergency Department for Assault

Firearm Violence Among High-Risk Emergency Department Youth After an Assault Injury

Firearm Possession Among Adolescents Presenting to an Urban Emergency Department for Assault

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