By Jueseppi B.
Guns in the Home and Risk of a Violent Death in the Home: Findings from a National Study
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Data from a US mortality follow-back survey were analyzed to determine whether having a firearm in the home increases the risk of a violent death in the home and whether risk varies by storage practice, type of gun, or number of guns in the home. Those persons with guns in the home were at greater risk than those without guns in the home of dying from a homicide in the home (adjusted odds ratio = 1.9, 95% confidence interval: 1.1, 3.4).
Data from a US mortality follow-back survey were analyzed to determine whether having a firearm in the home increases the risk of a violent death in the home and whether risk varies by storage practice, type of gun, or number of guns in the home. Those persons with guns in the home were at greater risk than those without guns in the home of dying from a homicide in the home (adjusted odds ratio = 1.9, 95% confidence interval: 1.1, 3.4).
Persons with guns in the home were also more likely to have died from suicide committed with a firearm than from one committed by using a different method (adjusted odds ratio = 31.1, 95% confidence interval: 19.5, 49.6).
Results show that regardless of storage practice, type of gun, or number of firearms in the home, having a gun in the home was associated with an increased risk of firearm homicide and firearm suicide in the home.
Over 50,000 homicides and suicides occur each year in the United States (1), making them among the leading causes of death, particularly for young people. In 2001, homicide was the second leading cause of death and suicide the third for persons 15–24 years of age (2). Approximately 60 percent of all homicides and suicides in the United States are committed with a firearm (2).
Although an estimated 40 percent of adults in the United States report keeping a gun in the home for recreational or protective purposes (3), the risks and benefits of this practice are widely disputed in the literature (4, 5). Ecologic analyses have suggested a link between the prevalence of gun ownership and rates of homicide and suicide (6–8) and between regulations restricting access to firearms and rates of homicide and suicide (9–12).
Although these studies are useful in demonstrating an association between access to firearms and rates of homicide and suicide at the aggregate level, it is not possible with this methodology to adequately assess whether access to a gun increases the risk of a violent death at the individual level.
To address these limitations, previous researchers have used case-control study methodology to evaluate the relation between gun ownership and risk of a violent death in the home. For example, Kellermann et al. (13,14) examined the relation between gun ownership and injury outcomes. After they controlled for a number of potentially confounding factors, the presence of a gun in the home was associated with a nearly five fold risk of suicide (adjusted odds ratio = 4.8) (13) and an almost threefold risk of homicide (adjusted odds ratio = 2.7) (14). Other case-control studies have also found an increased risk of suicide for those with firearms in the home, with relative risks ranging from 2.1 to 4.4 (15–19).
Some studies have specifically examined the association between purchase of a handgun and risk of a violent death (20, 21). In a case-control study of members of a large health maintenance organization, Cummings et al. (20) found that a history of family handgun purchase was associated with an elevated risk of both homicide and suicide.
Wintemute et al. (21) reported similar findings for suicide in a population-based cohort study of persons who had purchased a handgun in California. In both studies, the effects persisted for more than 5 years. However, studies conducted in other countries have failed to find a clear link between access to a firearm and risk of a suicide (22).
Many of the studies conducted to date have been based on small samples and were limited to specific population groups such as adolescents or older adults (15–19). Most of the studies have also been limited to a few counties, geographic areas, or states. We know of only two national case-control studies that have examined the relation between access to a firearm and a violent death (23, 24). One study focused on the perpetration of homicide as opposed to victimization and found a relatively weak association (adjusted odds ratio = 1.4) between gun ownership and homicide perpetration (23).
The other study focused on victimization and found a strong association for suicide (adjusted odds ratio = 3.4) but a weak association for homicide (adjusted odds ratio = 1.4) (24). In both studies, cases and controls were drawn from different data sources, and neither study was able to control for many of the potential confounders of homicide or suicide.
To evaluate the relation between firearms in the home and violent deaths in the home, we analyzed data from a US mortality follow-back survey. The purpose of our study was twofold: 1) to determine whether having a firearm in the home increases the risk of a homicide or suicide in the home relative to other causes of death in the home, and 2) to determine whether having a firearm in the home increases the risk that a homicide or suicide in the home will be committed with a firearm or by using other means. To our knowledge, this is the first national study to specifically examine the relation between firearms and violent deaths in the home.
Read the entire report at The American Journal of Epidemiology.
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Jueseppi B.
