The role of hypothermia and drowning in commercial fishing deaths in Alaska, 1990-2002.

Objectives: To describe the patterns associated with cold-water immersion and drowning in commercial fishermen in Alaska from 1990 through 2002.

Study Design: This is a retrospective study using data from the Alaska Occupational Surveillance System (AOISS), a database with records from all occupational mortalities occurring in Alaska from 1990 on.

Methods: We extracted and analyzed all records describing deaths from drowning or hypothermia to commercial fishermen in Alaska from 1990 through 2002 that were registered within AOISS. We also used a subset of records from AOISS to compare use of Personal Flotation Devices (PFDs) between the target population and survivors of fatal events.

Results: There were 228 deaths resulting from cold-water immersion and subsequent drowning in the target population for the time period studied. Victims were far less likely to have used PFDs than were survivors of events where cold-water drowning occurred.

Conclusion: The strong protective association seen with the use of PFDs, particularly immersion suits, in surviving cold-water events indicates that many of the events that led to deaths in the target population could well have been survivable.