Boots More Harmful Than Weapons In Street Violence, Study Shows
The prevention of attacks involving kicking or blunt objects is just as important as preventing knife violence, new research from Cardiff University shows.
A team from the University's Violence Research Group found that injuries inflicted with feet were more likely to result in severe injury than any other method of assault.
The team reviewed instances of violence resulting in treatment at the Emergency Department, University Hospital Wales, Cardiff between 1999 and 2005.
They found that while assault with a weapon was generally more likely to cause severe injuries than non-weapon assault, kicking was the single most likely method to cause severe injury. The next most likely methods were, in order, blunt objects, other body parts such as the head, and sharp objects. Fists, despite being the most common method of assault, were the least likely to cause serious injury.
The research, published in the international academic journal Injury Prevention, is the first ever to compare injuries by method of attack. Professor Jonathan Shepherd, who led the research, said the surprisingly severe injuries from kicking and blunt objects should make them just as high priorities as knives in violence reduction strategies.
Professor Shepherd said: "This might be achieved through public awareness campaigns and tackling alcohol misuse to reduce the chances of people falling over, since victims of violence are usually kicked after they have fallen.
"We also need to take action to reduce the availability of blunt objects coming to hand in licensed premises and city centre streets."
While there was little difference between injuries inflicted by one assailant or two assailants, the severity of injury rose significantly when there were three or more attackers. Professor Shepherd said that group violence should therefore be a further priority for action.
The study found that men aged 47 were the most likely to be severely injured. Women accounted for 25% of all victims, a higher percentage than that in previous UK studies, possibly reflecting changing behaviour in recent years.
:banghead: 