Fire Fatalities in Older People

McGwin, Gerald; Chapman, Victoria; Curtis, Jonathan M.; Rousculp, Matthew D.

doi:10.1111/j.1532-5415.1999.tb07430.x

Cited by 10 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…Gaps in burn/fire death rates by age and gender between Native Americans and non-Hispanic white people in the U.S., 1999-2004 a results based on national data are similar to prior findings limited to the state of Alabama. 21,22 A study such as this suffers limitations related to the completeness of both numerator and denominator data. The WISQARS data ultimately rely on the completeness of death certificates.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Heightened Risk of Fire Deaths among Older African Americans and Native Americans

Bishai

Lee

2010

Public Health Rep

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SYNOPSISObjective. We examined disparities in burn and fire injuries by age and race/ ethnicity to identify disparities during the life course.Methods. Burn and fire mortality rates were disaggregated by five-year age groups, gender, and race/ethnicity from 1999 to 2004.Results. Compared with non-Hispanic white people, Native American and African American people older than 55 years of age experienced a higher risk of death from fires and burns. The rate ratio of burn/fire deaths for African Americans compared with white people was 3.14 (95% confidence interval [CI] 2.98, 3.31) for those aged 55 years and older. The corresponding rate ratio for Native Americans compared with white people was 1.93 (95% CI 1.49, 2.46) for those aged 55 years and older.Conclusion. The especially heightened risk among minority seniors could reflect living arrangements that place them at higher risk. Heightened fire risks for minority seniors require broad attention and the development of effective interventions.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Heightened Risk of Fire Deaths among Older African Americans and Native Americans

Bishai

Lee

2010

Public Health Rep

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“…The majority of fire-related injuries and deaths in developed countries occur in the home [1–5]. In the United States, most fire-related deaths among young, middle-aged and older people are caused by residential fires [6–8]. In 2012–13, more than three-quarters of all fire-related deaths in the United Kingdom occurred in residential dwellings [9, 10] .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Domestic fire emergency escape plans among the aged in NSW, Australia: the impact of a fire safety home visit program

Tannous

Agho

2019

BMC Public Health

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Background Domestic fire-related injuries and deaths among the aged remain a concern of many countries including Australia. This study aimed to assess the impact of a home fire safety visit project on domestic fire emergency escape plans among the 373 aged persons using multivariate analyses. Method The study used data from a collaborative intervention program by three emergency agencies in New South Wales. It covered 373 older people at registration and 156 at post home visit follow-up. The five fire emergency escape plan outcome measures (participants having a working smoke alarm, finding out what to do if there was a fire at their home, making a plan to escape their home in the event of a fire, finding out how to escape their home in an emergency and finding out how to maintain their installed smoke alarm) were examined by adjusting for key characteristics of participants, using a generalized estimating equation (GEE) model that adjusted for repeated measures in order to examine the association between the home visit program and fire emergency escape plans. Results There were significant improvements in participants’ likelihood of finding out what to do if there was a fire in their home [AOR; 95% CI 1.89 (1.59–2.26)], making a plan to escape their home [AOR; 95% CI 1.80 (1.50–2.17)], how to escape their home in an emergency [AOR; 95% CI 1.33 (1.07–1.66)] and how to maintain their smoke alarm [AOR; 95% CI 1.77 (1.48–2.12)]. Female participants were less likely to have a plan to escape their home in the event of a fire [AOR; 95% CI 0.86 (0.75–0.99)] and to find out how to escape their home in an emergency [AOR; 95% CI 0.71 (0.61–0.82)] compared with their male counterparts. Additionally, participants who spoke languages other than English at home were significantly less likely to have a working smoke alarm [AOR; 95% CI 0.88 (0.38–0.69)]. Conclusion Our findings suggest that home visit programs are able to increase fire safety of vulnerable and isolated older people.

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“…[3][4][5][6][7][8] Behavioural factors, as well as cultural and sociodemographic differences, also aid in explaining this increased risk. 5,[9][10][11][12][13] The aim of this literature review was to find other possible medical and/or biological explanations that make the elderly more vulnerable to fire, smoke or heat that could explain the increased morbidity and mortality in elderly involved in a residential fire.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Medical and biological factors affecting mortality in elderly residential fire victims: a narrative review of the literature

Eggert

Huss

2017

Scars, Burns & Healing

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For older people (aged over 65 years), the risk of dying in a residential fire is doubled compared to the general population. Obvious causes of death mainly include smoke inhalation and burn injuries. That older people are more fragile and have more concurrent diseases is inherent, but what is it that makes them more vulnerable? It is known that the number of elderly people is increasing globally and that the increased risk of death in fires can be explained, at least in part, by physical and/or cognitive disabilities as well as socioeconomic and behavioural factors. The possibility that medical illnesses and an aging organism/tissues might explain this increased risk has not been shown to the same extent. Therefore, this narrative literature review focuses on medical and biological explanations. An initial search using the terms ‘elderly’, ‘fatal’, ‘residential’ and ‘fire’ yielded some interesting articles. Using a broader snowball search also accepting grey literature, several additional risk factors could be identified. Cardiovascular diseases, in particular atherosclerotic heart disease, greatly increases the vulnerability to, for example, carbon monoxide and probably also other asphyxiating gases. Cardiovascular diseases and lack of physical fitness may also increase vulnerability to heat. Burned elderly patients are also at a higher risk of death than younger patients, but it is controversial whether it is age itself or the pre-existing illnesses that come with age that increase the risk. Immunosenescence, malnutrition and female gender are other risk factors for poorer outcome after burns, all of which are common among older people.

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Fire Fatalities in Older People

Abstract: With the growth of the percentage of older people in the population, the problem of fire-related deaths in this age group is likely to increase. Interventions focused on this age group are necessary for the state of Alabama to meet the National Health Objectives for the year 2000.

Cited by 10 publications

References 30 publications

Heightened Risk of Fire Deaths among Older African Americans and Native Americans

Heightened Risk of Fire Deaths among Older African Americans and Native Americans

Domestic fire emergency escape plans among the aged in NSW, Australia: the impact of a fire safety home visit program

Medical and biological factors affecting mortality in elderly residential fire victims: a narrative review of the literature

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