Falls

Falling is the leading cause of unintentional injury among children:

• More than 2.3 million children under age 14 were treated in hospital emergency rooms for fall-related injuries in 2002.
• Children under age five are especially at risk, with falls among this age group accounting for half of the emergency room visits in 2002.

Falls account for the largest share of the cost from injury to children age 14 and younger.  Falls represent 25% all childhood unintentional injury costs, totaling approximately $94.9 billion annually.

Children of different ages are at risk for different types of falls.

• Infant falls are more commonly associated with furniture, stairs, and baby walkers
• Toddlers are at risk of window-related falls
• Older children are more likely to experience playground-related falls.
• The younger the child, the more likely the fall occurs at home, with 80% of falls in children under age 4 occurring at home.  23% of falls in children aged 5-14 occur at school and only 45% occur at home.

Other risk factors:

• Time of day: most falls occur between noon and early evening.
• Gender: Boys are more at risk of a fatal injury than girls, with boys twice as likely as girls to die from fall-related injuries.
• Income-Housing: Low-income children are also at risk as they are more likely to live in urban, multiple-story housing, putting them at greater risk for window falls and other injuries.

Healthy People 2010 Objectives Related to Falls:

15-27: Reduce Death From Falls

References:

Safe Kids Campaign. 2004. Facts About Childhood Falls.

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Page last updated: 06/15/2006

ACT for Health, Adolescent and Child Targets for Health Foundation, Inc., is an educational and charitable non-profit, non-governmental organization, tax-exempt under Section 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code.