A Dual Pandemic: The Influence of Coronavirus Disease 2019 on Trends and Types of Firearm Violence in California, Ohio, and the United States

Donnelly, Megan; Grigorian, Areg; Inaba, Kenji; Kuza, Catherine M.; Kim, Dennis; Dolich, Matthew; Lekawa, Michael; Nahmias, Jeffry

doi:10.1016/j.jss.2021.01.018

Cited by 28 publications

(38 citation statements)

References 26 publications

(33 reference statements)

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“…Firearm violence is a rising epidemic for children in the United States with recent investigations alluding to increased firearm violence 6 during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as some specifically referring to pediatric firearm violence. 15 , 16 This retrospective database study describes in detail the current trends and types of child-involved shootings. In the first year of the pandemic (2020), there was an increase in monthly shootings involving children, as well as incidents of children killed by an adult with a firearm.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This is consistent with the previously studied relationship between strength of firearm legislation and US firearm violence trends in adults. 15 , 25 , 26 Similarly, Tseng et al 27 reported that firearm-related injuries in hospitalized children were more prevalent in states with less-restrictive gun laws. This accumulation of data suggests gun laws to be an evidence-based approach to protect children and should be evaluated by all states or at a national level.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“… 14 These findings may at least partially explain the increase in child-involved shootings associated with the COVID-19 pandemic that have been described in the literature. 15 , 16 However, a complete review of the trends and types of firearm violence against children during the COVID-19 pandemic warrants further investigation. Thus, this study sought to evaluate the patterns of firearm violence against children before and after the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the patterns of specific types of firearm violence against children over time (2016–2020), hypothesizing increased total, fatal, and nonfatal child-involved shootings during the COVID-19 pandemic.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Firearm violence against children in the United States: Trends in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic

Donnelly¹,

Grigorian²,

Swentek³

et al. 2021

J Trauma Acute Care Surg

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BACKGROUND This study aimed to evaluate the patterns of firearm violence against children before and after the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the patterns of specific types of firearm violence against children over time (2016–2020). METHODS Retrospective firearm violence data were obtained from the Gun Violence Archive. The rate of firearm violence was weighted per 100,000 children. A scatterplot was created to depict the rate of total annual child-involved shooting incidents over time; with a linear trendline fit to 2016 to 2019 data to show projected versus actual 2020 firearm violence. All 50 states were categorized into either “strong gun law” (n = 25) or “weak gun law” (n = 25) cohorts. Multivariate linear regressions were performed for number of child-involved shootings over time. RESULTS There were a total of 1,076 child-involved shootings in 2020, 811 in 2019, and 803 in 2018. The median total child-involved shooting incidents per month per 100,000 children increased from 2018 to 2020 (0.095 vs. 0.124, p = 0.003) and from 2019 to 2020 (0.097 vs. 0.124, p = 0.010). Child killed by adult incidents also increased in 2020 compared with 2018 ( p = 0.024) and 2019 ( p = 0.049). The scatterplot demonstrates that total child-involved shootings in addition to both fatal and nonfatal firearm violence incidents exceeded the projected number of incidents extrapolated from 2016 to 2019 data. Multivariate linear regression demonstrated that, compared with weak gun law states, strong gun law states were associated with decreased monthly total child-involved shooting incidents between 2018 and 2020 ( p < 0.001), as well as between 2019 and 2020 ( p < 0.001). CONCLUSION Child-involved shooting incidents increased significantly in 2020 surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. Given that gun law strength was associated with a decreased rate of monthly child-involved firearm violence, public health and legislative efforts should be made to protect this vulnerable population from exposure to firearms. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE Epidemiological, level III.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Firearm violence against children in the United States: Trends in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic

Donnelly¹,

Grigorian²,

Swentek³

et al. 2021

J Trauma Acute Care Surg

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In the United States, free access to weapons increases the risk of penetrating injuries. In particular, during a home confinement period, the accessibility to weapons is easier for children, increasing this type of injury [ 26 , 27 ]. In the United Kingdome, an increase of pediatric abusive head trauma was reported during the lockdown period [ 28 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

COVID-19 Changed the Incidence and the Pattern of Pediatric Traumas: A Single-Centre Study in a Pediatric Emergency Department

Ruzzini

Salvatore

Lamberti

et al. 2021

IJERPH

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The first wave of COVID-19 spread worldwide from March to May 2020. Italy was one of the countries in the world where the lockdown period was most prolonged and restrictive. To date, the impact of prolonged lockdown on pediatric traumas has not fully investigated. This paper aimed to analyze, and compare to 2019, the incidence and the fracture pattern in patients admitted to our pediatric hospital during the total lockdown period. A single-center retrospective study was performed. The data were gathered from the Pediatric Emergency Department (PED) of the Bambino Gesù Children Hospital of Rome (Palidoro). This PED is the pediatric referral center for Rome and the hub for pediatric traumas of the region. Any admission diagnosis for fracture, trauma, sprains and dislocation during the lockdown period (10 March–4 May) were included. The demographic data, diagnosis, type of treatment, fracture segment, bone involvement and time interval between trauma and presentation to the PED were recorded. In 2020, a reduction of total traumas and fractures, compared to 2019 (p < 0.001), occurred (81%). Superior limb and inferior limb fractures decreased in 2020 compared to 2019 (p < 0.05). The identification of pediatric traumas and fractures trend could be useful to reorganize the PED. Epidemiological data from the previous lockdown could be helpful to prepare the healthcare system for new pandemic waves. Moreover, sharing national statistics and correlating those to other countries’ protocols, could be helpful to solve problems in case of worldwide emergency situations.

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“…These authors attempted to explain these increases in terms of increased rates of unemployment, arms sales and alcohol consumption in these cities. Donnelly et al (2021) [35] corroborated the increased rate of firearm incidents in Ohio (although there were no changes in California), with an even greater increase in firearm incidents, deaths and injuries following the reopening in 2020 in comparison with the SAH 2020 period and previous years (2018 and 2019). Evidence exists that access to firearms increases the lethality and damage caused by violence, both interpersonally as well as individually [36].…”

Section: Crime During the Pandemicmentioning

confidence: 95%

Spatial Analysis of Gunshot Reports on Twitter in Mexico City

García-Tejeda¹,

Fondevila²,

Siordia³

2021

IJGI

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The quarantine and stay-at-home measures implemented by most governments significantly impacted the volume and distribution of crime, and already, a body of literature exists that focuses on the effects of lockdown on crime. However, the effects of lockdown on firearm violence have yet to be studied. Within this context, this study analyzes reports of gunshots in Mexico City registered on Twitter from October 2018 to 2019 (pre-COVID-19) and from October 2019 to 2020 (during COVID-19), using a combination of spatial (nearest neighbor ratio, Ripley’s K function and kernel estimation) and non-spatial (Fisher’s exact test) methods. The results indicate a spatial concentration of gunshot reports in Mexico City and a reduction in frequency of reports during the pandemic. While they show no change in the overall concentration of gunshots during lockdown, they do indicate an expansion in the patterns of spatial intensity (moving from the west to the center of the city). One possible explanation is the capacity of possible victims of firearm crimes in certain municipalities to comply with lockdown measures and thus avoid exposure to such crimes.

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A Dual Pandemic: The Influence of Coronavirus Disease 2019 on Trends and Types of Firearm Violence in California, Ohio, and the United States

Cited by 28 publications

References 26 publications

Firearm violence against children in the United States: Trends in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic

Firearm violence against children in the United States: Trends in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic

COVID-19 Changed the Incidence and the Pattern of Pediatric Traumas: A Single-Centre Study in a Pediatric Emergency Department

Spatial Analysis of Gunshot Reports on Twitter in Mexico City

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