Victims of falls from a height surviving to hospital admission in two Singapore hospitals.
Falls from a height are a common problem in Singapore. However, there has been no analysis of the injury patterns and outcomes of patients who survived initial resuscitation after falls from a height in Singapore. One hundred and thirty-nine patients admitted over a two-and-a-half year period after falls of greater than one storey were studied. The higher the fall, the greater the likelihood of hypotension and neurological injury. The length of stay in hospital, the number of operative procedures and mortality also correlated with the height of the fall. The overall mortality rate was 11% but rose to 47% among patients who were hypotensive on admission. About half of the deaths were due to head injury with haemorrhage being the second most common cause. The majority of patients who fell from five or more storeys did so intentionally, and had more severe torso and extremity injuries compared with those who fell accidentally. These findings suggest that efforts in injury prevention and aggressive evaluation and treatment of fall victims arriving alive at the hospital continue to be important.
Ong
Adrian
A
Department of Surgery, National University Hospital, Singapore. aong@wpahs.org
Iau
Phillip T C
PT
Yeo
Allen Wy
AW
Koh
M P
MP
Lau
Gilbert
G
D000058:Accidental Falls / Q000401:mortality* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000328:Adult; D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000209:etiology / Q000401:mortality; D005260:Female; D006470:Hemorrhage / Q000209:etiology / Q000401:mortality; D006761:Hospitals; D006801:Humans; D007022:Hypotension / Q000209:etiology / Q000401:mortality; D007902:Length of Stay / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008297:Male; D010343:Patient Admission / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012846:Singapore; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000209:etiology / Q000401:mortality