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Cause, Setting, and Ownership Analysis of Dog Bites in Bay County, Florida from 2009-2010

James MatthiasMichael Templin

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Background CDC estimates more than 4.7 million

dog bites occur annually More than 800,000 Americans will

receive medical care resulting from dog bites

Average cost of a dog bite-related hospital stay found to be $18,200 †

Data on dog bites typically collected through hospital discharge or emergency room visit data

† http://www.hcup-us.ahrq.gov/reports/statbriefs/sb101.pdf

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How this data is different?

Hospital and Vital Statistics: Demographics Economics Short-term Outcomes Counts

Basically the WHO, WHAT, WHEN, WHERE, and HOW MUCH

Bay County Dataset Some Demographics Cause Restraint-levels Ownership Dog-Breed

Basically the WHO, WHERE, HOW, and WHY

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Presentation Objectives Describe the 800 dog bite reports from

2009 to 2010 Focus on 3 main variables by age and

sex: Victim’s relationship to the dog Restraint level of dog at time of bite Cause of the bite

Adapt prevention messages based on target audience

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About Bay County

Major City: Panama City 2010 Population*: 170,637 White : 144,758 (84.8%) Black : 19,893 (11.7%) Hispanic: 7,725 (4.5%) Industry: Trade,

Transportation, and Utilities (17.7%), then Leisure and Hospitality (16.7%)

Per capita income:$36,316 Est. Dog Pop.: 43,137†

*Population estimates from: floridacharts.com†Pet Population estimates from: AVMA U.S. pet ownership calculator

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Dog Bite Incidence Rates

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Role of Gender in Dog Bites

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Victim’s Relationship to Dog

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Role of Gender in Dog BitesBay County Dog Bites By Victim's Relationship to the Dog Stratified By Sex

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Family Member Acquaintance Unfamiliar AnimalGroomer/Vet/TechVictim's Relationship to Dog

Freq

uenc

y

Male Female

* Victim’s relationship to dog is statistical significantly different by gender (p<0.001)

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Victim’s Relationship to Dog Nationwide 80% of bites to people under

18 years old caused by family or neighbor’s dog

Similar for 0 – 5 year olds in this dataset 87% for 0 – 5 year olds Only 59% for 6 – 14 year olds

Acquaintance dog bites represent 45% of bites to 0 – 5 year old girls

Half of all dog bites to 15+ year olds from dogs unfamiliar to victim

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Restraint Status of the Dog

32% of all dog bites occurred from unrestrained dogs off of the owner’s property Comprised mostly of bites from an

unfamiliar dog 28% of bites occur within the home of

the owner 21% of bites occur from a dog

restrained or confined on owners property

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Role of Gender in Dog BitesRestraint Level of the Dog in Bay County Dog Bites by Victim's Gender

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In House On propertyconfined

On propertyNOT confined

OFF propertyrestrained

OFF propertyNOT restrained

Other/Unknown

Category of Restraint

Num

ber o

f Bite

s

Male Female

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Dog Bites in the Home

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Causes of the Bite Very little data on cause of dog bite most

anecdotal

More than 90% of bites are provoked†

100% of bites could be prevented Modification of human behavior Modification of dog and dog behavior Modification of exposure and environment

† http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1477646/pdf/pubhealthrep00185-0052.pdf

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Causes of The Bite

Wide variety of causes with originally 24 different categories

Separating dog fights the number 1 cause of bites, unknown cause 2nd, and territorial or protective dog bites being 3rd

Cause of bite varies tremendously on age and sex of person bitten

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Role of Gender in Dog BitesPrimary Causes of Bay County Dog Bites By Gender

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T/PHome/Yard

T/P OFFProp

Dog Fight Food or Toy Chased Roughouse Move vs.Will

Unknown

Potential Bite Cause

Num

ber o

f Bite

s

Male Female

* Primary causes of dog bites are statistically different by gender (p<0.001)

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Unknown Cause Dog Bites 39% of bites to 0 – 5 year olds were due

to unknown causes Victim unable to describe incident Lack of parental supervision

Between 7 to 14% for the other age groups Systematic in most instances Lack of desire to indicate the

circumstances that caused the bite in some instances

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Separating Dog Fight Bites

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A Unique Perspective

Able to gather bite information from sources outside of hospitals Account for higher incidence rates

observed in this study Still required someone to report bite

Situational variables not commonly collected in statistical format including: Restraint of the dog Cause of the bite

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Different Strata, Different Outcomes Incidence varies by sex and age caused

by changes in: the cause of dog bites the location of the attack the relationship of the dog to the victim other factors

The need for prevention messages or interventions to be tailored to target populations and circumstances (i.e. young boys vs. middle-aged women)

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Questions?

Thank you to Michael Templin, Kalynn Pressly, and the Bay County Health Department for their time and effort in this project

Thank you to Kyla Shelton, Dr. Danielle Stanek, and members of the Florida Department of Health for their assistance in this project