Report of the New South Wales Chief Health Officer, 1997

Graphic: Injury/Poisoning - Deaths from Injury and poisoning

Residence Sex 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994
NSW Males 73.6 67.7 71.4 70.3 70.2 64.2 58.9 58.7 52.5 58.0
  Females 27.2 27.0 25.7 26.6 27.1 23.3 22.3 20.4 18.7 20.4
  Persons 49.9 47.1 48.2 48.2 48.4 43.2 40.2 39.1 35.3 38.7
AUSTRALIA Males 72.6 71.2 73.2 75.0 70.4 67.7 64.1 61.3 58.6 -
  Females 27.9 27.6 26.6 28.0 26.9 25.2 24.4 23.3 20.2 -
  Persons 50.0 49.2 49.6 51.1 48.3 46.1 43.9 42.0 39.0 39.4

Note: Injury and poisoning were classified according to the ICD9 codes E800-869 E880-929 E950-999 NSW population estimates as at 30 June each year. Death rates were age-adjusted using the Australian population as at 30 June 1991.
Source:ABS mortality data and population estimates (HOIST), Epidemiology and Surveillance Branch, NSW Health Department. Figures for Australia are from Abraham B, d'Espaignet E T and Stevenson C, Australian health trends, AIHW, Canberra, 1995.
In 1994, 2,390 NSW people (1,694 males, 696 females) died following injury and poisoning, making it the fourth leading cause in both sexes. Injury and poisoning accounted for 7 per cent of all male deaths, 3 per cent of all female deaths and 5 per cent of all deaths.

The main causes of injury death were suicide (797 deaths or 33%), road injury (613, 26%), falls (339, 14%), unintentional poisoning (120, 5%), homicide (108, 5%) and unintentional drowning (95, 4%).

The rise in the injury death rate in 1994 was largely explained by increases in road injury deaths, and suicide in males.

The age-adjusted rate of death due to injury in 1994 for males was about three times that for females. The difference was most pronounced in the 20- to 29-year age group, where the male rate was five times the female rate.

Injury and poisoning is the primary cause of death in younger people. In the age range 1-39 years, there were 1,123 such deaths in 1994, making up approximately half of all deaths in that age group. Injury and poisoning made the greatest contribution to the overall death rate in the 20- to 24-year age group, causing 237 (72%) of the 327 deaths in this age group.

NSW Health has set a target for the year 2000 of reducing the death rate for injury and poisoning by 15 per cent compared with the 1992 rate.

For more information, see Bordeaux S and Harrison J, ‘Injury Mortality Australia 1994’, Australian Injury Prevention Bulletin, Issue 13, AIHW National Injury Surveillance Unit, Adelaide, 1996.
NSW Injury Expert Working Panel, Injury prevention and Management NSW goals and targets, NSW Health Department, Sydney, 1995.
The National Injury Surveillance Unit
Produced by Epidemiology and Surveillance Branch, Public Health Division, New South Wales Health Department on 24 March 1998.