December 12th, 2017
Compelling evidence exists that supports the significance of injuries, many of which are preventable, as a primary result of housing-related hazards: • Home injuries result in thousands of deaths each year. • The National Safety Council (NSC) estimates that there is one death every 16 minutes and one injury every 4 seconds in the U.S. as a result of injury events in the home (NSC, 2004). • Unintentional injuries are among the leading causes of death (and are the leading cause of preventable, premature death). They are the fifth leading cause of death in the U.S. among individuals of all ages, exceeded only by heart disease, cancer, stroke, and pulmonary disease.Among individuals aged 1 to 44 years, injuries are the most common cause of death (CDC/WISQARS, 2002). • Of all unintentional injury deaths, injuries in the home are the second leading cause, only surpassed by motor vehicle related deaths. The NSC estimates that in 2003, home-related injuries comprised about 33% of all injury-related deaths, amounting to approximately 33,100 deaths (NSC, 2004).