title: Injury-related visits and comorbid conditions among homeless persons presenting to emergency departments.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The authors examined the clinical characteristics of homeless patients presenting to emergency departments (EDs) in the United States, with a focus on unintentional and intentional injury events and related comorbid conditions.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study included a nationally representative sample of patients presenting to EDs with data obtained from the 2007 through 2010 National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NHAMCS). Descriptive and analytical epidemiologic analyses were employed to examine injuries among homeless patients.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Homeless persons made 603,000 visits annually to EDs, 55% of which were for injuries, with the majority related to unintentional (52%) and self-inflicted (23%) injuries. Multivariate logistic regression analyses revealed that homeless patients had a higher odds of presenting with injuries related to unintentional (odds ratio [OR]=1.4. 95% confidence interval [CI]=1.1 to 1.9), self-inflicted (OR=6.0, 95% CI=3.7 to 9.5), and assault (OR=3.0, 95% CI=1.5 to 5.9) injuries.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A better understanding of the injuries affecting homeless populations may provide medical and public health professionals insight into more effective ways to intervene and limit further morbidity and mortality related to specific injury outcomes.
authors.affiliation: The Division of Community Health Promotion, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR.
authors.forename: Bart
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Hammig
authors.forename: Kristen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Jozkowski
authors.forename: Ches
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Jones
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015897:Comorbidity; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006703:Ill-Housed Persons / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D016017:Odds Ratio; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology*; D055815:Young Adult