Background: Unintentional injuries are one of the most common health problems in childhood and adolescence. Information on the distribution and variation of accident prevalence is an important basis for accident prevention. The second follow-up survey of the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS Wave 2, 2014-17) enables the continuation of non-fatal accident monitoring at the federal level that began with the KiGGS baseline study (2003-06).
Methods: KiGGS Wave 2 is a nationwide cross-sectional survey conducted by the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) with participation of 15,023 children and adolescents aged 0 to 17 (response rate: 40.1%). Parents were interviewed about unintentional injuries of their children. Information on accidents is available from 2429 children and adolescents (1-17 years). Twelve-month prevalences with 95% CI were calculated and comparisons were made between KiGGS Wave 2 and the previous KiGGS surveys.
Results: Within the last 12 months, 16.5% of 1‑ to 17-year-old children and adolescents were medically treated for an accidental injury, with boys (18.6%) requiring treatment significantly more frequently than girls (14.3%). Of the total, 4.8% had three or more accidents. Every eighth injured child (12.4%) stayed in hospital for at least one night. Children and adolescents under 18 years were most likely to have accidents at home, in educational and care facilities, on playgrounds and in sports facilities.
Conclusion: Injury risks in childhood and adolescence vary primarily according to age and gender, but also, for example, according to personal and environmental factors. Knowledge of such contextual conditions is of great importance for the development of prevention measures. Since the beginning of the KiGGS study, there have been hardly any changes and no decrease in unintentional injuries in childhood and adolescence.
Keywords: Accidents; Adolescents; Children; Health survey; Injuries.