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June 11, 2001
Heading and Head Injuries in Soccer
Kirkendall DT, Jordan SE, Garrett WE. Sports Medicine 2001, 31(5):369-386.
Correspondence: Department of Orthopaedics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Campus Box 7055, Burnett-Womack Building, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7055, USA, donkirk@med.unc.edu
The authors discuss the risks of cognitive dysfunction in soccer players and make comments upon the possible role of heading, the purposeful use of the unprotected head for controlling and advancing the ball. The literature was reviewed and found wanting. Methodological problems and complaints about definitions led the authors to conclude that although there is support for concluding that concussive injuries lead to cognitive deficits, there is insufficient evidence to conclude that serial subconcussive impacts lead to deficits that have an effect on daily life. The authors suggest further study.
Technical report: lawn mower-related injuries to children.
Smith GA, Committee on Injury and Poison Prevention, American Academy of Pediatrics. Pediatrics 2001; 107(6 e106):1-3.
Full text available online: "http://www.pediatrics.org/cgi/content/full/107/6/e106/s.
The authors report on the epidemiology of lawn mower-related injuries in the United States and make recommendations for prevention. An estimated 68,000 lawn mover-related injuries are treated in emergency departments each year. Approximately 14 percent of these occur to children under 18 years of age. Twenty-four percent of pediatric mower-related injuries occur to children younger than five years old. The injury rate for ride-on mowers (2.6 per 1000 mowers) is more than three times that of walk-behind mowers. Approximately 8 percent of the deaths related to ride-on mowers involve passengers or bystanders (average age 6 and 4 years, respectively). Several suggestions for prevention are provided.
The storage of household long guns: the situation in Quebec.
Lavoie M, Cardinal L, Chapelaine, St-Laurent D. Chronic Diseases in Canada 2001; 22(1): 24-29.
Correspondence: Michel Lavoie, Direction de la sante publique de Quebec, 2400 d'Estimauville, Beauport Quebec, G1E 7G9, Canada, lavoie.michel@ssss.gouv.qc.ca
The authors report the results of a survey on the storage of household firearms in Quebec. At the time of the survey (1994) 35 percent (175/504) of respondents who kept long guns (rifles and shotguns) stated that they did not comply with Canada's firearm storage regulations. Firearms must be stored unloaded and rendered inoperable or inaccessible. In most cases (85 percent; n=149) this was because at least one stored gun was found to be both operable and accessible. On average, participants kept 2.7 long guns in their homes. The three most common long guns were 12-calibre shotguns (55%), 22-calibre rifles (42%), and .410 calibre shotguns (24%). Thirty-seven percent of study participants stated that no one had used their firearm(s) in the 12 months preceding the survey. The authors suggest that these findings point to two possible ways that would increase compliance with the storage regulations: render these weapons inoperable or inaccessible or dispose of those firearms that are no longer in use. Seeing is believing: what do boys do when they find a real gun?
Jackman GA, Farah MM, Kellermann AL. Pediatrics 2001; 107(6):1247-1250.
Correspondence: Geoffrey Jackman, Division of Pediatric Emergency Medicine, 100 North Medical Drive, Salt Lake City, UT 84113, USA geoffrey.jackman@hsc.utah.edu
The authors describe an observational study of the behavior of young males upon finding a firearm. A convenience sample of 8- to 12-year-old boys was recruited from families that completed a survey on firearm ownership, storage practices, and parental perceptions. Parents were asked to rate their child's interest in real guns on a scale from 1 to 5: 1-2 = low interest, 3 = moderate interest, and 4-5 = high interest. Parents of an eligible child were asked to bring to the exercise 1 of their son's playmates and/or a sibling in the same age range. After informed parental consent was obtained, each pair or trio of boys was placed in a room with a 1-way mirror and observed for up to 15 minutes. Two water pistols and an actual .380 caliber handgun were concealed in separate drawers. The handgun contained a radio transmitter that activated a light whenever the trigger was depressed with sufficient force to discharge the firearm. At the time they were led into the room, the children were told that they could play with the toys that were placed on the counter. They were also told that they could exit the room at any time if they had any questions or problems. They were not told to explore the room or open any cabinets. After the exercise, each boy was asked whether he thought that the pistol was real or a toy. Before leaving, each child was counseled about safe behavior around guns. Twenty-nine groups of boys (n = 64) took part in the study. The mean age of participants was 9.8 years. Twenty-one of the groups (72%) discovered the handgun (n = 48 boys); 16 groups (76%) handled it (n = 30 boys). One or more members in 10 of the groups (48%) pulled the trigger (n = 16 boys). Approximately half of the 48 boys who found the gun said that they thought that it was a toy or were unsure whether it was real. Parental estimates of their child's interest in guns did not predict actual behavior on finding the handgun. Boys who were believed to have a low interest in real guns were as likely to handle the handgun or pull the trigger as boys who were perceived to have a moderate or high interest in guns. More than 90% of the boys who handled the gun or pulled the trigger reported that they had previously received some sort of gun safety instruction.
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