title: Elevated depressive symptoms and adolescent injury: examining associations by injury frequency, injury type, and gender.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Key risk factors for adolescent injury have been well documented, and include structural, behavioural, and psychosocial indicators. While psychiatric distress has been associated with suicidal behaviour and related self-harm, very little research has examined the role of depression in shaping adolescent injury. This study examines the association of elevated depressive symptoms with injury, including total number of injuries and injury type. Gender differences are also considered.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data were drawn in 2010-11 from a representative sample of 2,989 high school students (14 to18 years of age) from Nova Scotia, Canada. Self-reported injury outcomes were examined using the 17-item Adolescent Injury Checklist, which captures past six-month injuries. Elevated depressive symptoms were assessed using the Centers for Epidemiological Studies Depression scale. Associations of elevated depressive symptoms with total number of injuries were estimated with negative binomial regression, while associations with specific injury types were estimated with logistic regression. Analyses were conducted in 2012.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Adolescents with elevated depressive symptoms experienced a 40% increase in the total number of injury events occurring in the past six months. The association of elevated depressive symptoms with injury was consistent across injury type; violence-related (OR 2.21, 95% CI 1.61 to 3.03), transport-related (OR 1.53, 95% CI 1.10 to 2.13), and unintentional injuries (OR 1.65, 95% CI 1.20 to 2.27). Gender differences were also observed.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Elevated depressive symptoms play a role in shaping adolescent injury. Interventions aimed at reducing adolescent injury should look to minimize psychosocial antecedents, such as poor mental health, that put adolescents at an elevated risk.
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Health and Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. mark.asbridge@dal.ca.
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Asbridge
authors.forename: Sunday
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Azagba
authors.forename: Donald B
authors.initials: DB
authors.lastname: Langille
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Rasic
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D057189:Checklist; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000150:complications*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D009674:Nova Scotia / Q000453:epidemiology; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012307:Risk Factors; D057566:Self Report; D017678:Sex Distribution; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology; D014754:Violence; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000145:classification / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*