Study Details Striking Rise in Self-Injury Among U.S. Girls

By Amy Orciari Herman

Edited by David G. Fairchild, MD, MPH, and Lorenzo Di Francesco, MD, FACP, FHM

Rates of nonfatal self-injury among young U.S. girls rose sharply between 2009 and 2015, according to a research letter in JAMA.

Using a national injury database, researchers identified over 43,000 ED visits (at 66 hospitals) for self-inflicted, nonfatal injuries among youth aged 10 to 24 years between 2001 and 2015. Age-adjusted injury rates among males remained stable throughout the period. Among females, however, rates began to increase after 2009. In particular, among girls aged 10 to 14, injury rates increased 19% per year from 2009 to 2015, from 110 to 318 per 100,000. The most common method of injury among females was poisoning, followed by use of sharp objects.

The authors note that the results align with previously reported increases in youth suicide after 2006, with girls aged 10 to 14 showing the greatest increases. They call for "implementation of evidence-based, comprehensive suicide and self-harm prevention strategies within health systems and communities."