Child gun deaths in the United States have hit a record high, according to a new study published by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s mortality database, the study published on Monday in the AAP journal Pediatrics found that 4,752 children died from gun-related injuries in 2021, the latest year for which data was available, up from 4,368 in 2020 and 3,390 in 2019.

Gun violence has been the No. 1 cause of death for children in the United States since 2020.

The study further showed that Black children accounted for around 67 percent of firearm homicides while white children made up about 78 percent of gun-assisted suicides. (Reuters)