Mental scars from gun violence take children years to defeat
Vanderbilt study: Children sustain long-term consequences
It’s probably not surprising to learn that children surviving gunshot wounds are more likely to experience persistent health problems.
But a new study led by a Vanderbilt University physician discovered that such injuries cost the U.S. health system and families tens of millions a year and leave lingering physical and mental scars that may take decades to heal. This study has huge implications in a region already leading the nation in the number of gun-related injuries involving children.
It also hits home for a Nashville community still reeling from the Covenant School shooting that left six mass murder victims dead.
Youth gun injuries shot up 74% nationally during the COVID-19 pandemic, a separate study found, indicating yet another grim statistic about children and gun violence. Guns have also overtaken vehicle accidents as the leading cause of death of U.S. children. That’s also true for the state of Tennessee.
“For every child who dies from a firearm injury, at least two or three more are injured,” said Dr. Kelsey Gastineau, assistant professor of Pediatrics at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt and the study’s lead investigator.
“And those children sustain long-term consequences that are often debilitating for them.”
The study looked at 2,110 non-fatal gun injuries involving children and found they had more than a fivefold increased risk for inpatient hospitalization in the year after initial injuries. The study also discovered they experienced an increased risk of visits to hospital emergency departments and outpatient clinics.
There were 11,258 non-fatal firearm injuries involving U.S. children in 2020, according to the study. Given the number of health care-related visits, the authors estimate the cost of care that year to be nearly $63 million. About half of children who survive gunshot wounds suffer permanent disabilities, said Dr. Joseph Fusco, a pediatric surgeon at the Vanderbilt children’s hospital. They vary widely from traumatic brain injuries to bullets that remain in bodies, he said.
“But that really only corresponds to 2% of all things. You really have to think about it a little more broadly,” Fusco said. “When you have firearm violence in childhood, it’s associated with things like high blood pressure, post-traumatic stress syndrome. It’s associated with future involvement in crimes. Hospitalizations themselves are stressors. It’s associated with sleep disturbances, separation from social support systems. There are large financial burdens. There’s so much.”
Tennessee ranks 30th in the nation when it comes to youth mental illness and 40th when it comes to access to mental health care, according to the non-profit Mental Health America.
“It’s not unusual for these kids to have significant anxiety around repeated hospitalizations or repeated procedures or ongoing medical care,” said Heather Kreth, an associate professor of pediatric psychology at Vanderbilt University. “This can also really significantly impact the mental health of parents of these children.”
Frank Gluck is the health care reporter for The Tennessean. He can be reached at fgluck@tennessean.com. Follow him on X (formerly known as Twitter) at @FrankGluck.