The association of psychological symptoms with unintentional injuries among retired employees of a university in China

Abstract

To investigate the association of psychological symptoms with injury risk, psychological symptoms were measured using symptom checklist-90 revised (SCL-90-R) and the unintentional injury information was followed up for 1 year among retired employees at a university in China. The injury rate had a significant difference between groups of raw mean score ≥2.0 and <2.0 for SCL-90-R global factor and subscale factors of obsessive compulsiveness, interpersonal sensitivity, depression and anxiety. After accounting for the factors of daily housework, physical activities, living alone and demographic factors, SCL-90-R global factor (odds ratio (OR) = 1.87, 95% CI: 1.20–2.91) and subscales factors of obsessive compulsiveness (OR = 1.93, 95% CI: 1.31–2.85), interpersonal sensitivity (OR = 2.05, 95% CI: 1.09–3.02), depression (OR = 2.09, 95% CI: 1.40–3.12) and anxiety (OR = 1.58, 95% CI: 1.03–2.44) were still significantly associated with an elevated risk of unintentional injury among the retired employees. In order to reduce the risk of unintentional injuries among the elderly, a psychological health service should be provided in the community.