Firework-related injuries treated at emergency departments in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 compared to 2018–2019
Abstract Background Despite a national decrease in emergency department visits in the United States during the first 10 months of the pandemic, preliminary Consumer Product Safety Commission data indicate increased firework-related injuries. We hypothesized an increase in firework-related injuries d...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2021-11-01
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| Series: | Injury Epidemiology |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s40621-021-00358-2 |
| _version_ | 1818402741298397184 |
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| author | Nathan Maassel Abbie Saccary Daniel Solomon David Stitelman Yunshan Xu Fangyong Li Emily Christison-Lagay James Dodington |
| author_facet | Nathan Maassel Abbie Saccary Daniel Solomon David Stitelman Yunshan Xu Fangyong Li Emily Christison-Lagay James Dodington |
| author_sort | Nathan Maassel |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Despite a national decrease in emergency department visits in the United States during the first 10 months of the pandemic, preliminary Consumer Product Safety Commission data indicate increased firework-related injuries. We hypothesized an increase in firework-related injuries during 2020 compared to years prior related to a corresponding increase in consumer firework sales. Methods The National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) was queried from 2018 to 2020 for cases with product codes 1313 (firework injury) and narratives containing “fireworks”. Population-based national estimates were calculated using US Census data, then compared across the three years of study inclusion. Patient demographic and available injury information was also tracked and compared across the three years. Firework sales data obtained from the American Pyrotechnics Association were determined for the same time period to examine trends in consumption. Results There were 935 firework-related injuries reported to the NEISS from 2018 to 2020, 47% of which occurred during 2020. National estimates for monthly injuries per million were 1.6 times greater in 2020 compared to 2019 (p < 0.0001) with no difference between 2018 and 2019 (p = 0.38). The same results were found when the month of July was excluded. Firework consumption in 2020 was 1.5 times greater than 2019 or 2018, with a 55% increase in consumer fireworks and 22% decrease in professional fireworks sales. Conclusions Firework-related injures saw a substantial increase in 2020 compared to the two years prior, corroborated by a proportional increase in consumer firework sales. Increased incidence of firework-related injuries was detected even with the exclusion of the month of July, suggesting that the COVID-19 pandemic may have impacted firework epidemiology more broadly than US Independence Day celebrations. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-14T08:13:11Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-59438eb2cfe9440bb16f5e95d118078b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2197-1714 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-14T08:13:11Z |
| publishDate | 2021-11-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Injury Epidemiology |
| spelling | doaj.art-59438eb2cfe9440bb16f5e95d118078b2022-12-21T23:10:01ZengBMCInjury Epidemiology2197-17142021-11-01811610.1186/s40621-021-00358-2Firework-related injuries treated at emergency departments in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 compared to 2018–2019Nathan Maassel0Abbie Saccary1Daniel Solomon2David Stitelman3Yunshan Xu4Fangyong Li5Emily Christison-Lagay6James Dodington7Department of Surgery, Yale University School of MedicineDepartment of Emergency Medicine, Yale University School of MedicineDepartment of Surgery, Division of Pediatric Surgery, Yale University School of MedicineDepartment of Surgery, Division of Pediatric Surgery, Yale University School of MedicineYale Center for Analytical Sciences, Yale University School of Public HealthYale Center for Analytical Sciences, Yale University School of Public HealthDepartment of Surgery, Division of Pediatric Surgery, Yale University School of MedicineDepartment of Pediatrics and Emergency Medicine, Yale University School of MedicineAbstract Background Despite a national decrease in emergency department visits in the United States during the first 10 months of the pandemic, preliminary Consumer Product Safety Commission data indicate increased firework-related injuries. We hypothesized an increase in firework-related injuries during 2020 compared to years prior related to a corresponding increase in consumer firework sales. Methods The National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) was queried from 2018 to 2020 for cases with product codes 1313 (firework injury) and narratives containing “fireworks”. Population-based national estimates were calculated using US Census data, then compared across the three years of study inclusion. Patient demographic and available injury information was also tracked and compared across the three years. Firework sales data obtained from the American Pyrotechnics Association were determined for the same time period to examine trends in consumption. Results There were 935 firework-related injuries reported to the NEISS from 2018 to 2020, 47% of which occurred during 2020. National estimates for monthly injuries per million were 1.6 times greater in 2020 compared to 2019 (p < 0.0001) with no difference between 2018 and 2019 (p = 0.38). The same results were found when the month of July was excluded. Firework consumption in 2020 was 1.5 times greater than 2019 or 2018, with a 55% increase in consumer fireworks and 22% decrease in professional fireworks sales. Conclusions Firework-related injures saw a substantial increase in 2020 compared to the two years prior, corroborated by a proportional increase in consumer firework sales. Increased incidence of firework-related injuries was detected even with the exclusion of the month of July, suggesting that the COVID-19 pandemic may have impacted firework epidemiology more broadly than US Independence Day celebrations.https://doi.org/10.1186/s40621-021-00358-2 |
| spellingShingle | Nathan Maassel Abbie Saccary Daniel Solomon David Stitelman Yunshan Xu Fangyong Li Emily Christison-Lagay James Dodington Firework-related injuries treated at emergency departments in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 compared to 2018–2019 Injury Epidemiology |
| title | Firework-related injuries treated at emergency departments in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 compared to 2018–2019 |
| title_full | Firework-related injuries treated at emergency departments in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 compared to 2018–2019 |
| title_fullStr | Firework-related injuries treated at emergency departments in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 compared to 2018–2019 |
| title_full_unstemmed | Firework-related injuries treated at emergency departments in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 compared to 2018–2019 |
| title_short | Firework-related injuries treated at emergency departments in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 compared to 2018–2019 |
| title_sort | firework related injuries treated at emergency departments in the united states during the covid 19 pandemic in 2020 compared to 2018 2019 |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s40621-021-00358-2 |
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