Aboriginal children are 1.6 times more likely to be hospitalised for unintentional injuries than non-indigenous kids, says new research.
They are much more at risk of hospitalisation from poisoning and from injuries stemming from exposure to fire, flames, heat and hot substances.
But the difference between the two groups was small for falls, the leading type of unintentional injury in all Australian children.
The UNSW-led study was published in the American Journal of Public Health.
"Unintentional injuries in children are highly preventable," said Professor Louisa Jorm, from the university's Centre for Big Data Research in Health.
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Aboriginal child health could be improved through injury risk programs specifically targeting indigenous communities and the geographical areas with high injury rates.
The researchers analysed hospital and mortality data for more than 1.12 million children born in a NSW hospital between 2000 and 2012.
Of these, 35,749 children were identified as Aboriginal.
The study considered and excluded factors such as rural or remote locations and socio-economic status in assessing unintentional injuries in Aboriginal children.
"Our results also indicate that these inequalities are even larger than previously reported and are not only a result of the greater proportion of Aboriginal people living in rural areas," she said.
"We were surprised to find that the substantial inequalities in hospitalisations for some causes, such as transport injuries and poisoning, are largest in major cities and inner regional areas, which goes against the prevailing view."
