Skip to content

Condition: Post with Page_List

Listen
Search
Please enter at least 3 characters.

Latest Stories

Gun violence against kids went up during the pandemic, MU study finds

gun lying on a wood surface
Getty Images

A new study out of the University of Missouri shows that firearm injuries and deaths in children increased during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The study in minors mirrors the results of similar studies in adults — the pandemic was associated with an increase in frequency and mortality of firearm injuries in kids. Lead study author Dr. Mary Bernardin, a pediatric emergency medicine specialist, explained more.


"Not only did the rate of shootings go up, but the lethality went up as well," she said. "A lot more children that were shot needed to go to the operating room because of their injuries and needed the pediatric intensive care unit because of their injuries."

Before the pandemic, Dr. Bernardin said they saw about six to seven children shot per month. But during the pandemic it went up to more than ten children per month. She said in the future, we might need to be more aware that as cases surge, so might gun violence to both kids and adults.

Copyright 2023 KMOX (Audacy). All Rights Reserved.

Follow KMOX | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
Listen on the free Audacy app.
Tell your smart speaker to play K M O X.