Injury

An injury is any physiological damage to living tissue caused by immediate physical stress. An injury can occur intentionally or unintentionally and may be caused by blunt trauma, penetrating trauma, burning, toxic exposure, asphyxiation, or overexertion. Injuries can occur in any part of the body, and different symptoms are associated with different injuries. Treatment of a major injury is typically carried out by a health professional and varies greatly depending on the nature of the injury. Traffic collisions are the most common cause of accidental injury and injury-related death among humans. Injuries are distinct from chronic conditions, psychological trauma, infections, or medical procedures, though injury can be a contributing factor to any of these. Several major health organizations have established systems for the classification and description of human injuries. Injuries may be intentional or unintentional. Intentional injuries may be acts of violence against others or self-harm against one's own person. Accidental injuries may be unforeseeable, or they may be caused by negligence. In order, the most common types of unintentional injuries are traffic accidents, falls, drowning, burns, and accidental poisoning. Certain types of injuries are more common in developed countries or developing countries. Traffic injuries are more likely to kill pedestrians than drivers in developing countries. Scalding burns are more common in developed countries, while open-flame injuries are more common in developing countries. As of 2021, approximately 4.4 million people are killed due to injuries each year worldwide, constituting nearly 8% of all deaths. 3.16 million of these injuries are unintentional, and 1.25 million are intentional. Traffic accidents are the most common form of deadly injury, causing about one-third of injury-related deaths. One-sixth are caused by suicide, and one-tenth are caused by homicide. Tens of millions of individuals require medical treatment for nonfatal injuries each year, and injuries are responsible for about 10% of all years lived with disability.