| Since July 2000, nationally representative data have been collected on injuries treated in a stratified probability sample of 66 hospital emergency departments (EDs) through the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System All-Injury Program (NEISS-AIP). NEISS-AIP data enable calculation of national, annualized, weighted estimates for nonfatal injuries treated in U.S. hopsital Eds, and suggest that approximately 1.7 million persons were treated in U.S, EDs during 2000 for injuries related to nonfatal physical assaults, incluing an estimated 63,984 sexual assaults. This analysis examnes injuries related to sexual assaults, using data from July 2000 through June 2001. Preliminary estimates suggest that more than 33,000 ED visits are identified annually as involving sexual assault of someone age 15 or older. ED visits for this type of injury are predominantly by females (93%), most of whom are not hospitalized. For a substantial proportion of ED visits for sexual assault (55%), the perpetrator-victim relationship is unknown or unspecified in the hospital chart. Annualized weighted estimates for sexual assault rates will be presented, controlling by demographic and injury-related variables, disposition, and perpetrator-victim-relationship. NEISS-AIP analyses are compared to ED visit data from other data sources, and we consider the overall utility of NEISS-AIP analyses of sexual assault. |
Updated 05/20/2006