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Published on: April 6, 2020
Risk factors for unintentional injuries due to falls in children aged 0-6 years: a systematic review
A Khambalia1, P Joshi, M Brussoni
1Division of Paediatric Medicine and the Paediatric Outcomes Research Team, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Insights
Childhood falls are a major concern. Key risk factors for fall injuries in children aged 0-6 years include age, sex, poverty, and fall circumstances, highlighting areas for prevention.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric injury prevention
- Public health research
- Child safety
Background:
- Unintentional injuries from falls pose a significant health burden in young children.
- Limited controlled studies exist on risk and protective factors for pediatric fall injuries.
Purpose of the Study:
- To systematically review and identify risk factors associated with unintentional fall injuries in children aged 0-6 years.
- To synthesize evidence on factors contributing to the incidence and severity of fall-related injuries in early childhood.
Main Methods:
- A comprehensive systematic literature review was conducted.
- Empirical research published between 1966 and March 2005 was identified through electronic database searches.
- Studies included a comparison group to evaluate risk factors for fall injuries in children aged 0-6 years.
Main Results:
- Fourteen studies met the inclusion criteria, varying in injury type (e.g., bunk beds, stairs) and evidence quality.
- Identified risk factors included child's age and sex, fall height, surface type, fall mechanism (e.g., dropped, walker use), and socioeconomic status.
- Setting (daycare vs. home care) also emerged as a relevant factor.
Conclusions:
- Despite the high incidence of fall injuries, controlled research on risk factors in young children remains scarce.
- Age, sex, and poverty were identified as independent risk factors for fall injuries from a population health perspective.
- Further research is needed to establish comprehensive prevention strategies for childhood falls.
Objective:
To identify risk factors for unintentional injuries due to falls in children aged 0-6 years.
Design:
A systematic review of the literature.
Methods:
Electronic databases from 1966 to March 2005 were comprehensively searched to identify empirical research that evaluated risk factors for unintentional injuries due to falls in children aged 0-6 years and included a comparison group.
Results:
14 studies met the inclusion criteria. Studies varied by the type of fall injury that was considered (ie, bunk bed, stairway, playground or infant walker) and with respect to the quality of evidence. In general, major risk factors for the incidence or severity of injuries due to falls in children included age of the child, sex, height of the fall, type of surface, mechanism (dropped, stairway or using a walker), setting (day care v home care) and socioeconomic status.
Conclusion:
Despite a high burden, few controlled studies have examined the risk and protective factors for injuries due to falls in children aged 0-6 years. The only study to examine falls from a population health perspective suggests that age, sex and poverty are independent risk factors for injuries due to falls in children.
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