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Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is one of the leading causes of death and disability in North America and as such requires ongoing surveillance 1,2 . Tracking health resource utilization over time, by age, and by gender provides valuable information regarding the burden of TBI on health care services, including post acute care. Furthermore, accurately identifying the rates of TBI is critical to the planning and evaluation of prevention efforts.Recent reports based on hospital admission data in Canada and the United States have documented a decrease in the number of in-patient admissions over the last two decades 3,4 , particularly for children and for incidents of "mild" TBI (mTBI). Studies that focus on in-patient admissions, however, may be misleading in that the decrease in numbers could reflect a shift towards treating children and mTBI sufferers at emergency departments (EDs). To date, there are no recent peer reviewed studies documenting TBI-related ED visits at a population based level, in a publicly ABSTRACT: Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the number of annual hospitalizations and overall episodes of care that involve a traumatic brain injury (TBI) by age and gender in the province of Ontario. To provide a more accurate assessment of the prevalence of TBI, episodes of care included visits to the emergency department (ED), as well as admissions to hospital. Mechanisms of injury for overall episodes were also investigated. Methods: Traumatic brain injury cases from fiscal years 2002/03-2006/07 were identified by means of ICD-10 codes. Data were collected from the National Ambulatory Care Reporting System and the Discharge Abstract Database. Results: The rate of hospitalization was highest for elderly persons over 75 years-of-age. Males generally had higher rates for both hospitalizations and episodes of care than did females. The inclusion of ED visits to hospitalizations had the greatest impact on the rates of TBI in the youngest age groups. Episodes of care for TBI were greatest in youth under the age of 14 and elderly over the age of 85. Falls (41.6%) and being struck by or against an object (31.1%) were the most frequent causes for a TBI. Conclusions:The study provides estimates for TBI from the only Canadian province that has systematically captured ED visits in a national registry. It shows the importance of tracking ED visits, in addition to hospitalizations, to capture the burden of TBI on the health care system. Prevention strategies should include information on ED visits, particularly for those at younger ages. Cette étude fournit des estimés de LCT dans la seule province canadienne qui inscrit a systématiquement les visites à l'urgence dans un registre nationale. Elle montre l'importance de faire le suivi des visites à l'urgence en plus des hospitalisations pour apprécier le fardeau que constitue la LCT sur le système de santé. Les stratégies de prévention devraient mentionner l'information sur les visites à l'urgence, particulièrement chez les jeunes.

The workplace is a key setting where gender issues and organizational structures may influence occupational health and safety practices. The enactment of dominant norms of masculinity in high risk occupations can be particularly problematic, as it exposes men to significant risks for injuries and fatalities. To encourage multi-disciplinary collaborations and advance knowledge in the intersecting areas of gender studies, men's health, work and workplace health and safety, a national network of thirteen researchers and health and safety stakeholders completed a critical literature review examining the intersection between masculinities and men's workplace health and safety in order to: (i) account for research previously undertaken in this area; (ii) identify themes that may inform our understanding of masculinity and workplace health and safety and; (iii) identify research and practice gaps in relation to men's workplace health and safety. In this paper we present key themes from this review. Recommendations are made regarding: (i) how to define gender; (ii) how to attend to and identify how masculinities may influence workers' identities, perceptions of occupational risks and how institutionalized practices can reinforce norms of masculinity; (iii) the importance of considering how masculinities may intersect with

The purpose of this study was to develop and test a model to predict educational aspirations of Canadian adolescents. Participants were a national sample of 4,034 students from grades 8-13 (2,037 males, 1,973 females). Results of a modified structural model included three sets of influences: a) a background factor comprised of parental occupation and education; b) a family involvement factor consisting of parental personal and school-based involvement with adolescents; and c) a personal factor with school marks, school and course perceptions, extracurricular reading and parental educational expectations as indicator measures. Educational aspirations was the main outcome variable. Results indicated that the personal factor had a strong direct influence on educational aspirations (β = 1.17, p <.001, R2= .76). The effects of the background and family involvement factors on educational aspirations were mediated through the personal factor. Additional analyses performed in order to test the relationships obtained in the model, revealed several significant interactions amongst the three predictor factors and educational aspirations. The findings emphasize the importance of efforts to enhance the educational aspirations of adolescents through targeted change of modifiable environmental and personal factors.

raumatic brain injury (TBI) is a leading cause of death and disability worldwide. It is a very serious and often overlooked health care issue. Victims are often young, and survivors of TBI often live with devastating consequences, including temporary or permanent impairments, partial or total functional disability, psychosocial maladjustments and associated economic burdens. 1 Even mild injuries can have long-term consequences. 2 An examination of coroners' files in Ontario showed that approximately half of all workplace fatalities involved a brain injury. 3 In a study by Kim et al. 4 based on severe injuries identified from the Ontario Trauma Registry, it was found that hospitalizations involving workrelated traumatic brain injuries increased by 12.4% from 1993 to 2001. Information obtained from the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) of Ontario revealed that the number of occupational TBI claims has nearly doubled over a span of eight years. 5 Previous studies have examined severe/fatal 3,4 or mild cases separately. 6 To date, no recent study has investigated occupational TBI across levels of severity. Because of the number of negative repercussions associated with occupational TBI and the apparent rise in its occurrence, a comprehensive examination of occupational TBI across levels of severity is needed in the Canadian context. Additionally, men continue to represent the majority of fatal and seriously injured, 3,4 therefore we hypothesize that men will display a more detrimental profile of occupational TBIs than women. Thus the objectives of this study were to provide an overview of occupational TBIs that includes factors associated with the injury, the implication being that the results may assist in better targeting the prevention of work-related TBI, such as through sex-specific prevention. METHODSA case series design was used to examine all WSIB claims with an injury date in the year 2004 and categorized by the WSIB as either "intracranial injury" or "concussion". All fatalities categorized as "traumatic" were also examined, for evidence of traumatic brain injury. The WSIB data are based on approximately 70% of the total Ontario workforce and were abstracted using a form that drew upon Haddon's Matrix. 7 In total, just over 1,500 non-fatal claim files were examined. Of those claims, 1,006 qualified as TBIs. Only claims with a confirmed