Abstract
OBJECTIVES: To estimate the risk of drowning by different bodies of water in and near the home for children aged 1 to 4 years. SETTING: The Metropolitan Area of Guadalajara, Mexico. METHODS: A population case-control study. Cases (n=33) were children 1 to 4 years old who drowned at their home; controls (n=200) were a random sample of the general population. RESULTS: The risk of drowning for children whose parents reported having a water well at home was almost seven times that of children in homes without a water well (adjusted odds ratio (OR)=6.8, 95% confidence interval (CI)=2.2 to 20.5). Risk ratio estimates for other bodies of water were: swimming pools (OR=5.8, 95% CI=0.9 to 37.5), water barrel (OR=2.4, 95% CI=1.0 to 5.6), underground cistern (OR=2.1, 95% CI=0.8 to 5.2), and a basin front (courtyard pool to store water) of 35 or more litres (OR=1.8, 95% CI=0.8 to 4.4). CONCLUSION: Drowning at home is frequent in the Metropolitan Area of Guadalajara, but the causes are different from those reported in developed countries. Accordingly, the preventive strategies must also be different.
Full text
PDF
Images in this article
Selected References
These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.
- Barell V., Zadka P., Halperin B., Sidransky E. Childhood mortality from accidents in Israel, 1980-84. Isr J Med Sci. 1990 Mar;26(3):150–157. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Budnick L. D., Ross D. A. Bathtub-related drownings in the United States, 1979-81. Am J Public Health. 1985 Jun;75(6):630–633. doi: 10.2105/ajph.75.6.630. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Celis A. Asfixia por inmersión en Jalisco: 1983-1989. Salud Publica Mex. 1991 Nov-Dec;33(6):585–589. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Dietz P. E., Baker S. P. Drowning: epidemiology and prevention. Am J Public Health. 1974 Apr;64(4):303–312. doi: 10.2105/ajph.64.4.303. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Fingerhut L. A., Kleinman J. C., Malloy M. H., Feldman J. J. Injury fatalities among young children. Public Health Rep. 1988 Jul-Aug;103(4):399–405. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Gardiner S. D., Smeeton W. M., Koelmeyer T. D., Cairns F. J. Accidental drownings in Auckland children. N Z Med J. 1985 Jul 24;98(783):579–582. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Jumbelic M. I., Chambliss M. Accidental toddler drowning in 5-gallon buckets. JAMA. 1990 Apr 11;263(14):1952–1953. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Keeling J. W., Golding J., Millier H. K. Non-natural deaths in two health districts. Arch Dis Child. 1985 Jun;60(6):525–529. doi: 10.1136/adc.60.6.525. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Knobel G. J., de Villiers J. C., Parry C. D., Botha J. L. The causes of non-natural deaths in children over a 15-year period in greater Cape Town. S Afr Med J. 1984 Nov 24;66(21):795–801. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Mann N. C., Weller S. C., Rauchschwalbe R. Bucket-related drownings in the United States, 1984 through 1990. Pediatrics. 1992 Jun;89(6 Pt 1):1068–1071. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Mizuta R., Fujita H., Osamura T., Kidowaki T., Kiyosawa N. Childhood drownings and near-drownings in Japan. Acta Paediatr Jpn. 1993 Jun;35(3):186–192. doi: 10.1111/j.1442-200x.1993.tb03036.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- O'Carroll P. W., Alkon E., Weiss B. Drowning mortality in Los Angeles County, 1976 to 1984. JAMA. 1988 Jul 15;260(3):380–383. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Pearn J. H., Wong R. Y., Brown J., 3rd, Ching Y. C., Bart R., Jr, Hammar S. Drowning and near-drowning involving children: a five-year total population study from the City and County of Honolulu. Am J Public Health. 1979 May;69(5):450–454. doi: 10.2105/ajph.69.5.450. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Pearn J., Nixon J., Wilkey I. Freshwater drowning and near-drowning accidents involving children: a five-year total population study. Med J Aust. 1976 Dec 18;2(25-26):942–946. doi: 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1976.tb115532.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]