National Estimates of Youth and Injuries on U.S. Farms, 2012.

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), in order to provide injury surveillance for youth on farms in the U.S., partnered with the USDA to conduct the Childhood Agricultural Injury Survey (CAIS). CAIS data for all farm youth less than 20 years of age have been collected intermittently since 1998. CAIS data from 2012 indicated that an estimated 25.9 million youth lived on, worked on, or visited U.S. farms. These youth experienced almost 14,000 injuries while on the farm. The majority of these injuries occurred to males (7,290) and youth between the ages of 10 and 15 years (5,766). Approximately 20% (2,739) of the injuries were related to work being done on the farm. Youth living on the farm incurred 56% (7,784) of the injuries. An additional 5,771 injuries occurred to hired and visiting youth. Although youth injuries on farms have declined, the numbers are still unacceptably high. Additional research and detailed assessments of subsets of the youth population would help to better direct safety intervention programs and focus future research activities.

Nonfatal all-terrain vehicle-related injuries to youths living on farms in the United States, 2001.

CONTEXT: Use of all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) in agriculture appears to be growing. PURPOSE: To provide estimates of ATV ownership and exposure on US farms and an overview of injuries to youths as a result of ATV use on the farm in 2001. METHODS: Analysis of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and US Department of Agriculture 2001 Childhood Agricultural Injury Survey. These data, collected via telephone surveys, provide information on nonfatal injuries that occurred to youths younger than 20 years living on US farms during 2001. The injuries included both occupational and nonoccupational incidents. FINDINGS: Of an estimated 1.1 million youths living on farms, 36% had operated an ATV in 2001. Youths younger than 16 years were more likely to have operated an ATV than a tractor on these farms. An estimated 2,246 nonfatal ATV-related injuries occurred to youths younger than 20 years on US farms during 2001. The majority of these ATV injuries (1,668, 74%) occurred to youths identified as members of the household. Males accounted for 1,145 (69%) of the ATV injuries to household youths. The majority of the injuries were to youths aged 10-15 years (1,170, 70%). Most ATV injuries were the result of recreational activities (970, 58%). In addition, many of these injury events involved youths riding without helmets and using ATVs that were larger than the recommended size for their age.

Nonfatal injuries to household youth on Native American operated farms in the U.S., 2000.

In 2000, there were an estimated 7,381 youth living on 9,556 U.S. farms operated by Native Americans. Most of these youth (5,454, 74%) lived on livestock operations (6,833 farms, 72%). In that year, youth living on Native American operated farms sustained an estimated 177 nonfatal injuries. The majority of all injuries to household youth (147, 83%) occurred on livestock operations. Males accounted for 112 (63%) of the injuries to household youth. Overall, household youth on Native American operated farms had an injury rate of 24.0 injuries per 1,000 household youth compared to a rate of 8.1 injuries per 1,000 household youth on all other minority-operated farms. The rate ratio for work-related injuries to household youth on Native American farms compared to other minority-operated farms was 2.1. Although female youth on these farms experienced a similar non-work injury rate of 13.8 injuries per 1,000 female household youth compared to a rate of 15.1 injuries per 1,000 male household youth, the work-related injury rate for male youth (30.2 per 1,000 male household youth) was substantially higher than the work-related injury rate for female household youth (18.3 per 1,000 female household youth). These data indicate an elevated risk of injury for youth living on farms operated by Native Americans. This result is attributed to the large percentage of livestock operations for this population and the hazards associated with this type of farming. However, further research is needed to more fully understand these results and to guide culturally appropriate interventions within this population.

Household youth on minority operated farms in the United States, 2000: exposures to and injuries from work, horses, ATVs and tractors.

INTRODUCTION: It is likely that youth living on minority operated farms (<3% of U.S. farms) face hazards similar to the general farm population; however, since minority youth are not well represented by general farm surveys, this information hasn't been confirmed. METHOD: Nonfatal injury and exposure data were obtained from the 2000 Minority Farm Operator Childhood Agricultural Injury Survey (M-CAIS). RESULTS: On racial minority farms, there were an estimated 28,600 household youth. Of these, about 41% worked, 26% rode a horse, 23% drove an ATV, and 23% operated a tractor. On Hispanic farms, there were an estimated 17,998 household youth. Of these, 44% worked, 30% rode a horse, 27% drove an ATV, and 25% operated a tractor. CONCLUSIONS: These results show the value of conducting a survey of minorities to identify high risk groups and target issues that may be unique to the minority farm population.

Injuries to youth living on U.S. farms in 2001 with comparison to 1998.

To obtain sustained injury surveillance data for youth on farms, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health developed the Childhood Agricultural Injury Survey (CAIS) in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The first CAIS collected data for youth less than 20 years in 1998 through a regionally stratified telephone survey of 50,000 U.S. farm households; a second CAIS for 2001 was conducted using the same methodology. In 2001, there were approximately 1.2 million youth living on U.S. farms. These youth suffered an estimated 19,397 injuries (15.7/1,000 household youth). Approximately 60% (11,571) of the household youth injuries were to males. For all household youth, 10-15 year olds experienced the most injuries (49%, 9,486). In addition to providing estimates of demographics, injuries, and injury rates for household youth from the 2001 CAIS, this article provides a comparison to results from the 1998 CAIS. The number of household youth injuries on farms from 1998 to 2001 decreased by almost 30% (27,321 vs. 19,397). The results of this study show an overall decrease in the injury rate for youth living on the farm from 1998 to 2001 (18.8/1,000 household youth vs. 15.7/1,000 household youth). However, there was a considerable increase in the number of injuries to household females less than 20 years of age during this same time period. There was also an increase in the number of all terrain vehicle (ATV) and horse-related injuries. Continued surveillance is needed to assess if these are significant trends or the result of changing farm demographics.