U.S. gun deaths to kids rise in pandemic: study

People gather during a rally decrying rising gun violence while urging politicians to take action in Washington, D.C., the United States, June 11, 2022. (Xinhua/Liu Jie)

The escalation in injuries was driven by a significant increase in firearm assaults and homicides, as well as increased frequency of innocent children injured as bystanders amidst adult crime.

NEW YORK, Jan. 17 (Xinhua) -- The COVID-19 pandemic is tied to a surge in childhood injuries and deaths due to firearms in the United States, a study conducted at one St. Louis hospital has found.

Black children and those in low-income households were at greater risk, according to the University of Missouri-led study.

"We found a significant increase in pediatric firearm injury rates during the pandemic compared to the five preceding years," lead study author Mary Bernardin was quoted by news portal HealthDay as saying.

"The escalation in injuries was driven by a significant increase in firearm assaults and homicides, as well as increased frequency of innocent children injured as bystanders amidst adult crime," Bernardin said in a university news release.

For the study, the researchers compared records of pediatric firearm injuries treated at St. Louis Children's Hospital from March 2015 to February 2020 to those treated between March 2020 through March 2022.

In the earlier period, there were 413 pediatric firearm injuries, compared to 259 during the pandemic study period, with the monthly injury rate rising 52 percent from an average of 6.8 shootings per month to 10.3 per month during the pandemic. In addition, pediatric firearm deaths rose 29 percent during the pandemic, according to the study.