Children, Adolescents and Young Adults

Injuries and Accidents in children, adolescents and young adults under the age of 24 

According to the latest data from the RETRACE 2013-2020 multiyear report.

Children and adolescents aged 0-14

Traumatic injury is the leading cause of mortality in 1- to 14-year-olds, according to data from the Cause-of-Death Record (Registre des causes de décès).

Children aged 0-14 who come to the emergency department with trauma generally have minor injuries that tend not to lead to hospital admission. However, if the injury occurs on a public highway, the hospitalisation rate is higher than for accidents occurring elsewhere. Hospitalisation rates rose in 2020, from 5 % over the period 2013-2019 to 7 % in 2020. This indicates that children aged 0–14 attended the emergency department for somewhat more serious injuries in 2020.

• Residents aged 0-4:
  injuries are mainly sustained at home. 37 % of falls in 0- to 4-year-olds occurring at home happen when the child is sleeping/resting or during a leisure activity or game. Specifically, 30 % of falls at home, in children aged 0-4, are falls from a sofa, armchair, chair or parent's bed.
  
  
• Residents aged 5-14:
  accidents mainly occur in educational settings, representing 37 % of cases between 2013 and 2020. Falls are the main cause of injury, causing bruising in 36 % of cases, fractures and sprains in 30 % of cases, and wounds in 16 % of cases. In children aged 5-9 (26 %) and 10-14 (28 %), football is the sport which causes most injuries during physical education classes as part of the school curriculum for the period 2013-2019.

Adolescents and young adults aged 15-24

Injuries/accidents are also the leading cause of mortality in adolescents and young adults aged 15-24. Around 10 adolescents and young adults die as a result of injuries/accidents every year.

The hospitalisation rate following an injury/accident is estimated at 3 % in residents and non-residents aged 15-24. This number is considerably lower than the hospitalisation rate following an injury in the general population (7 %) and in people aged 25-69 (6 %).

Young men aged 15-24 are 1.5 times more likely to suffer injury/accident than young women in the same age group for the period 2013-2020, with the exception of self-inflicted injuries.

In 2013-2019, young people aged 15-24 injured themselves most while playing football or basketball, or while cycling. However, road traffic accidents among 15- to 19-year-olds increased in 2020, due to the significant increase in such accidents linked to cycling in 2020.

Preventive steps

Injuries/accidents at home and those at school (including sport-related injuries) are the accidents most frequently observed in patients under the age of 24. Activities to prevent injuries and accidents in this age range should focus, notably, on home safety and on educating people about the dangers involved in playing sport.