Objective To systematically review studies measuring the influence of pre-existing disability on the risk of sustaining an injury. Design Systematic review. Data sources Electronic databases searched included Medline (Pubmed), ProQuest, Ovid and EMBASE. Inclusion criteria Studies (1990-2010) in international peer-reviewed journals were identified with main inclusion criteria being that the study assessed involvement of injury sustained by persons with and without pre-existing disability. Methods Studies were collated by design and methods, and evaluation of results. Results Twenty-two studies met the inclusion criteria of our review. All studies found that persons with disabilities were at a significantly higher risk of sustaining injuries than those without. Persons with disability had a 30-450% increased odds (odds ratio 1.3-5.5) of sustaining injury compared to persons without disability. Among persons with pre-existing disability, the high risk groups of sustaining an injury are children and elderly. Conclusions People with disabilities experience a higher risk to sustain an injury in comparison to the healthy population. There is a high need for large epidemiological studies of injury among persons with disability, to better address these unique risk profiles in order to prevent additional disability or secondary conditions.

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doi.org/10.1016/j.aap.2013.09.024, hdl.handle.net/1765/72011
Accident Analysis & Prevention
Erasmus MC: University Medical Center Rotterdam

Yung, S., Haagsma, J., & Polinder, S. (2014). A systematic review on the influence of pre-existing disability on sustaining injury. Accident Analysis & Prevention, 62, 119–208. doi:10.1016/j.aap.2013.09.024