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Falling out of bed: a relatively benign occurrence
1Sydney University Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Children's Hospital, Camperdown, Australia.
Insights
Falls from beds or cribs rarely cause serious injuries in young children. Healthcare providers should question the history if a child presents with significant injuries after a short fall.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric medicine
- Injury prevention
- Trauma care
Background:
- Falls from elevated surfaces are common in young children.
- Understanding injury patterns from bed or crib falls is crucial for accurate diagnosis.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the incidence and severity of injuries in children falling from beds or cribs.
- To evaluate the correlation between fall height and injury outcome.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective review of 207 children under 6 years old who fell from beds or cribs.
- Analysis of injury types and severity based on hospital records and medical examinations.
- Measurement of fall heights, including those resulting from climbing over rails.
Main Results:
- Most injuries were superficial (contusions, lacerations).
- Only one simple skull fracture and one fractured clavicle were reported.
- No serious, life-threatening, or visceral injuries were observed.
Conclusions:
- Short-distance falls from beds or cribs are unlikely to cause severe harm.
- Significant injuries attributed to short falls warrant further investigation into the reported history.
Objective:
To determine the likelihood of injuries occurring to infants and children who fall out of bed.
Methods:
A review of hospital records where children were documented to have fallen from a crib or bed and where the children were immediately assessed and examined following the fall.
Patients:
Two hundred seven children younger than 6 years of age. One hundred twenty-four falls were from cribs and 83 from beds. The heights of the falls were 25 inches from beds or 41 inches when the child climbed over the bed rails and then fell, and 32 inches from cribs or 54 inches for those who fell after climbing the crib rails.
Results:
There were 29 superficial injuries such as contusions or minor lacerations. One simple skull fracture was noted incidentally on skull roentgenogram and there was one fractured clavicle. There were no serious, multiple, visceral, or life-threatening injuries. Calculation of the momentum of impact between the injured and noninjured showed no significant difference.
Conclusions:
Because falls from short distances are unlikely to produce serious injury, the reliability of the history should be questioned when a child has significant injuries said to have resulted from a short fall.