Nonfatal Firearm Injury Surveillance Data for 2023

A collection of over 100,000 estimated annual cases of nonfatal firearm-related injuries treated in U.S. hospital emergency departments. It was collected via the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) by the CDC's National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. The data includes variables such as age, sex, diagnosis, injury intent, and disposition at discharge.

Use Cases

• Analyze the distribution of injury intent categories across different age and sex cohorts.
• Model the relationship between principal diagnosis and disposition at ED discharge (e.g., hospitalized vs. treated and released).
• Investigate patterns in the locale where the injury occurred for different consumer products involved.
• Estimate national incidence rates of nonfatal firearm injuries segmented by race/ethnicity and primary body part affected.

Strengths

• Based on a national stratified probability sample of U.S. hospitals with 24-hour emergency departments.
• Provides over 100,000 estimated cases annually for national-level analysis.
• Includes detailed case variables such as injury intent, diagnosis, and a narrative description of circumstances.

Limitations

• Contains only nonfatal injuries, excluding fatal firearm incidents.
• Data is based on sample estimates, not a complete census of all injuries.
• Relies on hospital emergency department records, which may not capture injuries treated elsewhere.

Provenance

Source

United States Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control.

Collection Method

Collected via the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) from a stratified probability sample of U.S. hospitals.

Time Range

2023

Freshness

Annual public release; data covers January through December 2023.

Geography

United States and its territories.