NFIRS 5.0 Element: ‘Cause of Illness/Injury’
Définition : The physical event that caused the injury or illness.
Purpose : When combined with Body Site and Type of Injury, this element permits an understanding of the conditions causing injury or illness and provides a means of developing strategies to reduce injuries and sudden illnesses.
Entry : Enter the two-digit code that indicates the immediate cause or condition responsible for the injury or illness.
Element Specification
| Specification | Value |
|---|---|
| Requirement | Optional |
| Element Type | Coded Field – The coded field relating to an entry in the code table. Most coded fields allow for Plus+ One codes. For these fields the expected length of the coded entry is depicted as (National length OR Plus+ One length). Only fields with this notation in the expected length column allow for Plus+ One definitions. If the user has not provided information, an empty field should be transmitted. |
CAUSE OF ILLNESS/INJURY CODES
Here are the NFIRS codes for the ‘Cause of Illness/Injury’ element
| 10 | Chemical exposure. Includes accidental poisoning by solid or liquid substances, gases, and vapors, which are not included under accidental drug poisoning (11). |
| 11 | Drug poisoning. Includes accidental poisoning by drugs, medicinal substances, or biological products. |
| 12 | Fall. Excludes falls that occur in the context of other external causes of injury, such as fires, falling off boats, or falling in accidents involving machinery in operation. |
| 13 | Aircraft-related accident. Includes spacecraft. |
| 14 | Bite. Includes animal bites, including non-venomous snakes and lizards. Excludes venomous stings (36). |
| 15 | Bicycle accident. Includes any pedal cycle accident. Pedal cycle is defined to include bicycles and tricycles. Excludes motor vehicle or motorbike accidents. |
| 16 | Building collapse/construction accident. Includes all accidents on construction sites. Not to be used for specific mechanism of injury (e.g., “Fall”). |
| 17 | Drowning, not related to watercraft use. Includes swimming accidents, bathtubs, etc. |
| 18 | Electrical shock. Includes accidents related to electric current from exposed wires, faulty appliances, high- voltage cables, live rails, or open electric sockets. Excludes lightning (26). |
| 19 | Cold. Includes cold injuries due to weather exposure or cold produced by man, such as in a freezer. |
| 20 | Heat. Includes thermal injuries related to weather or heat produced by man, such as in a boiler room or factory. Excludes heat injury from conflagration (22). |
| 21 | Explosives. Includes all injuries related to explosives. Excludes fireworks (25). |
| 22 | Fire and flames. Includes burning by fire, asphyxia or poisoning from conflagration or ignition, and fires secondary to explosions. |
| 23 | Firearm. Includes accidental and purposeful firearm injuries. |
| 25 | Fireworks. Injuries caused by pyrotechnics designed for or used for display purposes. Includes consumer fire works. |
| 26 | Lightning. Excludes falling objects as a result of lightning and injuries from fires that are a result of lightning. |
| 27 | Machinery. Includes machinery accidents except when machinery is not in operation. Excludes electrocution (18). |
| 28 | Mechanical suffocation. Includes suffocation in bed or cradle (crib death), closed space suffocation, plastic bag asphyxia, and accidental hanging. |
| 29 | Motor vehicle accident. Includes any motor vehicle accident occurring on or off a public roadway or highway. |
| 30 | Motor vehicle accident, pedestrian. Motor vehicle accidents in which the patient was a pedestrian struck by a motor vehicle of any type. Includes individuals on skates, in baby carriages, in wheelchairs, on skateboards, and on skis. |
| 31 | Non-traffic vehicle accident. Includes any motor vehicle accident occurring entirely off public roadways or highways. For instance, an accident involving an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) in an off-road location would be a non-traffic accident. |
| 32 | Physical assault/abuse. Includes all forms of battering and non-accidental injury to patients. |
| 33 | Scalds/Other thermal. Includes all burn injuries resulting from hot liquids or steam. |
| 34 | Smoke inhalation. Includes smoke and fume inhalation from fire. |
| 35 | Stabbing assault. Includes cuts, punctures, or stabs of any part of the body. |
| 36 | Venomous sting. Includes bites and stings from venomous snakes, lizards, spiders, scorpions, insects, marine life, or plants. For animal bite, use 14. |
| 37 | Water transport. Includes all accidents related to watercraft. Excludes drowning and submersion accidents (17) unless they are related to watercraft use. Thus, if a person falls out of a boat and drowns, it should be coded within this category. If a person drowns in a swimming pool or bathtub, it should be coded as “Drowning.” |
| 00 | Cause of illness/injury, other. |
| UU | Unknown. Includes situations when data cannot be accurately reconstructed from the run record. |
Transactions containing ‘Cause of Illness/Injury’
The value of this element is captured by the following transaction :
Need more NFIRS help?
Here are some other useful ressources to learn more about NFIRS.
NFIRS Codes Cheat Sheet – NFIRS Coding – NFIRS Examples – FDIDs – POCs – NFIRS Transactions – NFIRS Modules – NFIRS Elements – NFIRS Rules – NFIRS Reference – NFIRS Compliant ?
You can also read this NFIRS 5.0 Complete Reference Guide, and NFIRS 5.0 Design Documentation in order to have a deeper understanding of NFIRS 5.0. Here are also NFIRS 5.0 Forms ready for you to download and use.
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Last Updated on April 28, 2023