National Estimates of Emergency Department Visits for Medication-related Self-harm—United States, 2016–2019
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National Estimates of Emergency Department Visits for Medication-related Self-harm—United States, 2016–2019

Filetype[PDF-208.50 KB]


  • English

  • Details:

    • Alternative Title:
      Inj Prev
    • Description:
      Background:

      Medication poisoning is a common form of self-harm injury, and increases in injuries due to self-harm, including suicide attempts, have been reported over the last two decades.

      Methods:

      Cross-sectional (2016–2019) data from sixty emergency departments (EDs) participating in an active, nationally-representative public health surveillance system were analyzed and United States national estimates of ED visits for medication-related self-harm injuries were calculated.

      Results:

      Based on 18,074 surveillance cases, there were an estimated 269,198 (95% confidence interval [CI], 222,059–316,337) ED visits for medication-related self-harm injuries annually in 2016–2019 compared with 1,404,090 visits annually from therapeutic use of medications. Population rates of medication-related self-harm ED visits were highest among persons aged 11–19 years (58.5 [95% CI, 45.0–72.0] per 10,000), and lowest among those aged ≥65 years (6.6 [95% CI, 4.4–8.8] per 10,000). Among persons aged 11–19 years, the ED visit rate for females was four times that for males (95.4 [95% CI, 74.2–116.7] versus 23.0 [95% CI, 16.4–29.6] per 10,000). Medical or psychiatric admission was required for three-quarters (75.1%; 95% CI, 70.0%-80.2%) of visits. Concurrent use of alcohol or illicit substances was documented in 40.2% (95% CI, 36.8%-43.7%) of visits, and multiple medication products were implicated in 38.6% (95% CI, 36.8%-40.4%). The most frequently implicated medication categories varied by patient age.

      Conclusions:

      Medication-related self-harm injuries are an important contributor to the overall burden of ED visits and hospitalizations for medication-related harm, with the highest rates among adolescent and young adult females. These findings support continued prevention efforts targeting patients at risk for self-harm.

    • Pubmed ID:
      35922136
    • Pubmed Central ID:
      PMC10249045
    • Document Type:
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