Firearms, firearms injury, and gun control: a critical survey of the literature.

Firearm-related deaths are a major health problem in the United States. Legislation limiting the ownership, sale and use of firearms often is proposed as a means of reducing firearm-related deaths. There is a substantial and growing literature on the epidemiology of firearm-related death, as well as numerous studies grounded in the social sciences. Many of these directly address the issue of the impact of gun control on death rates. This paper provides a survey of existing knowledge of the effects of gun control legislation on firearm-related homicide, suicide, and unintentional fatal injury rates. We identify several major gaps in the literature that need to be addressed in future research.