Characteristics and Costs of Ladder Fall Injuries: A Report from a Single Emergency Center in Okayama.
We sought to identify the incidence, injury patterns, and financial burden of ladder fall injuries to provide a reference for reinforcing guidelines on the prevention of such injuries. We enrolled the patients who were injured in a ladder-related fall and required intensive care between April 2012 and March 2014 at Okayama University Hospital, a tertiary care hospital in Okayama City:9 patients injured in 7 stepladder falls and 2 straight ladder falls. The median patient age was 69 years, and 8 were males. Six falls occurred in non-occupational settings. Head injuries predominated, and the injury severity score ranged from 2 to 35 (mean＝21±12). At the time of discharge from the intensive care unit, one patient had died and 5 patients had some neurological disabilities. The case fatality rate was 11%. The total cost of care during the review period was ￥16,705,794, with a mean cost of ￥1,856,199 per patient. Ladder fall injuries are associated with a high rate of neurological sequelae and pose a financial burden on the health insurance system. A prevention education campaign targeting at older-aged males in non-occupational settings may be a worthwhile health service investment in this community.
Department of Pediatrics, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Okayama 700-8558, Japan.pv702xz5@s.okayama-u.ac.jp.
Nobuyuki
N
Nosaka
Yu
Y
Goda
Emily
E
Knaup
Kohei
K
Tsukahara
Tetsuya
T
Yumoto
Toyomu
T
Ugawa
Yoshihito
Y
Ujike
D000058:Accidental Falls / Q000191:economics*; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D017281:Cost of Illness; D005260:Female; D017048:Health Care Costs; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010353:Patient Education as Topic