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Safety and Injury Prevention

Falls - Injury Statistics and Incidence Rates

The following statistics were are the latest available from the National SAFE KIDS Campaign:

More than 2.3 million children ages 14 and under are treated annually at hospital emergency rooms for fall-related injuries.
In 1999, falls killed 120 children ages 14 and under.
More than half of fall-related injuries among children occur among ages 5 and under.
About 18 children ages 10 and under die annually from falls from windows. Another 4,700 children ages 14 and under will require treatment each year for window fall-related injuries.

Infants are more likely to fall from furniture, baby walkers, and stairs.
Toddlers tend to fall from windows.
Older children fall more often from playground equipment.
Most falls occur during common play times for children: noon to early evening.
The majority of falls (more than 80 percent) among children ages 4 and under occur in the home.
Falls from windows tend to be the most severe or fatal.
Window falls most often occur in urban, low-income neighborhoods, and in deteriorated and overcrowded housing.
In 1999, more than 15,000 children were treated for injuries sustained from bleachers, half of which involved falls.

Preschoolers are at greatest risk for falls.
Children ages 10 and under sustain fall-related injuries twice as often as other children.
Boys are twice as likely to die from fall-related injuries than girls.
Most often, children who fall from windows are boys under the age of 5 who are playing unsupervised.
Children who live in apartment buildings are five times more likely to fall from a window.

Playground falls cause more than 223,000 children, ages 14 and under, to require emergency room treatment.
Most playground-related injuries occur when children fall to the ground (70 percent).
The most severe playground-related injuries are due to falls (90 percent). One-third of playground-related fatalities are due to falls.
Children ages 4 and under tend to suffer injuries to the face and head from playground-related injuries, while older children are more likely to injure arms or hands.