title: Incidence of fires and related injuries after giving out free smoke alarms: cluster randomised controlled trial.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To measure the effect of giving out free smoke alarms on rates of fires and rates of fire related injury in a deprived multiethnic urban population.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cluster randomised controlled trial.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty electoral wards in two boroughs of inner London, United Kingdom.
  
  
  METHODS
  Primarily households including elderly people or children and households that are in housing rented from the borough council.
  
  
  METHODS
  20 050 smoke alarms, fittings, and educational brochures distributed free and installed on request.
  
  
  METHODS
  Rates of fires and related injuries during two years after the distribution; alarm ownership, installation, and function.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Giving out free smoke alarms did not reduce injuries related to fire (rate ratio 1.3; 95% confidence interval 0.9 to 1.9), admissions to hospital and deaths (1.3; 0.7 to 2.3), or fires attended by the fire brigade (1.1; 0.96 to 1.3). Similar proportions of intervention and control households had installed alarms (36/119 (30%) v 35/109 (32%); odds ratio 0.9; 95% confidence interval 0.5 to 1.7) and working alarms (19/118 (16%) v 18/108 (17%); 0.9; 0.4 to 1.8).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Giving out free smoke alarms in a deprived, multiethnic, urban community did not reduce injuries related to fire, mostly because few alarms had been installed or were maintained.
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Medicine and Biometrics, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Campus Box B-119, Denver, CO 80262, USA. Carolyn.DiGuiseppi@uchsc.edu
authors.forename: Carolyn
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: DiGuiseppi
authors.forename: Ian
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Roberts
authors.forename: Angie
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wade
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sculpher
authors.forename: Phil
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Edwards
authors.forename: Catherine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Godward
authors.forename: Huiqi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Pan
authors.forename: Suzanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Slater
mesh_terms: D002056:Burns / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D004630:Emergencies; D005390:Fires / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D016015:Logistic Models; D008131:London / Q000453:epidemiology; D011204:Poverty Areas; D011482:Protective Devices; D012307:Risk Factors; D012906:Smoke / Q000009:adverse effects*; D015208:Smoke Inhalation Injury / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D014504:Urban Health
chemical_list: D012906:Smoke