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Disability and risk of non-fatal residential injuries among adults

¹ The University of North Carolina Injury Prevention Research Center, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
² Department of Epidemiology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
³ Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
⁴ Department of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA

Correspondence to:
C Vladutiu, 137 East Franklin Street, CB #7505, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7505, USA; cvladutiu{at}unc.edu

Objective: Many unintentional injuries occur in the home, but little research has considered the specific vulnerability of people with disabilities.

Design: Cross-sectional study examining nationally representative data from the 2004–2006 National Health Interview Surveys.

Subjects: Adults aged 18 and older who reported having an unintentional, non-motor vehicle-related injury in the home (n = 2189) or outside the home (n = 2072) and those who reported no injuries (n = 81 919) 3 months before their interview.

Main outcome measure: Non-fatal, unintentional, non-motor vehicle-related injuries.

Results: Among respondents experiencing a residential injury, 21.2% reported one type of disability, 11.2% reported two disabilities, and 9.1% reported three or more disabilities. As the number of disabilities increased, the odds of reporting a residential injury increased. Adults with three or more disabilities had three times the odds of reporting a residential injury (adjusted odds ratio = 3.2, 95% CI 2.7 to 3.9), compared with adults reporting no injury.

Conclusion: The risk of injury in the residential environment among adults with disabilities increases with increasing numbers of disabilities. Attention to home safety issues for residents with disabilities is needed.