Falls from heights in and around the city of Batman.
BACKGROUND
We evaluated the demographic data, mortality rates, fall causes, and post-mortem findings of individuals who fell from heights.


METHODS
Five hundred thirty-eight patients who sustained injuries after an accidental fall from heights were entered into the study. Our cases were collected prospectively in Batman over a seven- month period.


RESULTS
The mean age was 12.4+/-3.22 years (3 months-98 years); 56.5% of patients were under 6 years old and 83.5% were under 20 years old. The mean fall height was 3.2+/-2.4 m. The mortality rate was 2.2%, and was highest among the patients who fell from flat-roofed houses. The most common injuries were to the head, and 100% of those who died had a head injury. Six patients were followed because of abdominal bleeding and 141 patients due to extremity fractures; 6.7% of patients were operated on and 83.8% of patients were treated in the emergency department.


CONCLUSIONS
The results of this study were at variance with literature data with respect to the following: falls from heights were most common in the 0-5 years of age group. Craniocerebral trauma is the most common injury in fatal falls. Males had a higher rate of falls from height than females.
Department of Emergency Medicine, Gaziantep University Faculty of Medicine, Gaziantep, Turkey. behcetal@gmail.com
Behçet
B
Al
Cuma
C
Yildirim
Sacid
S
Coban
D000058:Accidental Falls / Q000401:mortality* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D006259:Craniocerebral Trauma / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000401:mortality; D005260:Female; D050723:Fractures, Bone / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006798:Housing; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012737:Sex Factors; D014421:Turkey / Q000453:epidemiology; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000401:mortality; D055815:Young Adult