Citation

Day H, Roesler JS, Kinde M. Minn. Med. 2007; 90(7): 43-5, 47.

Affiliation

Minnesota Department of Health's Injury and Violence Prevention Unit, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2007, Minnesota Medical Association)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

17725094

Abstract

This paper is the first to describe the incidence of hospital-treated dog bites in Minnesota using hospital discharge data supplemented with medical record review. The rate of hospital-treated dog bites rose 40% during the 8-year period studied, with the largest growth being seen in the number of emergency department (ED) visits. The highest rates of both hospitalization and ED treatment occurred among children ages 1 to 4 years. In most instances (75%), the victim was familiar with the dog(s) involved. The dog bites most often occurred in the home (48%) and yard (18%). Our findings emphasize the importance of physicians, especially pediatricians and family physicians, counseling parents about the importance of supervising their children when they are around dogs and teaching them safe behaviors around animals. Finally, this study validates the value of hospital discharge data for surveillance of hospital-treated dog bites.

Language: en