20 Children a Day Injured by Guns

Nearly 7,400 people under age 20 end up in U.S. hospitals each year because of a gun-related injury. So says a study in the journal Pediatrics. That’s about 20 children a day. Six percent of those admitted died from their injuries, the study found. Researchers used data from the 2009 Kids’ Inpatient Database to examine the types of injuries seen. They looked at the cause of these injuries. In particular, were these gunshot injuries the result of an attack, suicide or accident? They also broke it down by age, gender and race. Among the findings: Nearly 90% of those hospitalized were male; 47% occurred in black children and teens. An attack or suicide was involved in most 15- to 19-year-old hospital admits related to guns. In children younger than 10, 75% were the result of accidents.