title: Biomechanical evaluation of injury severity associated with patient falls from bed.
abstract: This study investigated the severity of injuries associated with falling from bed and the effectiveness of injury-prevention strategies. Injury criteria were calculated for head- and feet-first falls from six bed heights onto a tiled surface and floor mat. These values indicated a 25% chance of experiencing a serious head injury as a result of falling feet-first from a bed height of 97.5 cm onto a tiled surface. Risk of injury increased to 40% when extrapolated for the height added by bedrails. Using a floor mat decreased this risk to less than 1% for bedrail height for feet-first falls. Calculated impact forces indicated a risk of skull fracture when hitting the tiled surface. Floor mats and height-adjustable beds positioned to the lowest height should be used to decrease the risk of injury associated with falling from bed.
authors.affiliation: University of South Florida, College of Engineering, Tampa, FL, USA.
authors.forename: Bonnie
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bowers
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lloyd
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Powell-Cope
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Baptiste
mesh_terms: D000058:Accidental Falls / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001513:Beds; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D015400:Clinical Nursing Research; D006259:Craniocerebral Trauma / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D003654:Deceleration / Q000009:adverse effects; D004867:Equipment Design; D005430:Floors and Floorcoverings; D006801:Humans; D015601:Injury Severity Score; D008297:Male; D008348:Manikins; D008432:Mathematical Computing; D009730:Nursing Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D010388:Pelvis / Q000293:injuries; D011187:Posture; D012149:Restraint, Physical; D018570:Risk Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D012307:Risk Factors; D017751:Safety Management; D013898:Thoracic Injuries / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control