Nonfatal assault rate increased 75.4 percent among men from 2002 to 2016
THURSDAY, April 4, 2019 (HealthDay News) — There has been an increase in the rates of violence among older adults, especially among older men, according to research published in the April 5 issue of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
J.E. Logan, Ph.D., from the CDC in Atlanta, and colleagues analyzed rates of nonfatal assaults and homicides against older adults (≥60 years) during 2002 to 2016 using data from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System-All Injury Program and the National Vital Statistics System.
The researchers observed a 75.4 percent increase in the nonfatal assault rate during the 15-year period among men (from 77.7 to 136.3 per 100,000) and a 35.4 percent increase from 2007 to 2016 among women (from 43.8 to 59.3 per 100,000). The homicide rate increased by 7.1 percent among men from 2010 to 2016; among men aged 60 to 69 years, there was a 19.3 percent increase from 2013 to 2016.
“Violence against older adults is an emerging and underreported public health problem,” the authors write. “Emergency departments might be promising settings to identify older adults at risk for violence and treat and support those already affected.”
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