Original Article

Evaluation Of Patient Characteristics And Outcome In Fall From Height

10.4170/jaem.2009.01.0005

  • Mustafa SEVER

Eurasian J Emerg Med 2009;8(1):25-29

Objective:

Falls from height are the second leading cause of death from accidental injury in the south-east of Turkey. In this present study, we aimed to describe the patient characteristics and outcome differences according to scene of accident in fall from height.

Materials and Method:

One-hundered and fourty patients who fallen from height were analyzed retrospectively based on demographic characteristics, transport distance, and mortality frequencies. Patients allocated into two groups. First group being by referred from city center and second group was by referred from the provinces. Chi-square test use to compare categorical variations and values were expressed as mean ± SD. P values of 0.05 or less were considered statistically significant.

Results:

Ninty-one (65%) of patients were males were males and the mean age of patients were 15.8 ± 14.7 years. Fifty-four (38.6%) of patients were in 2nd group. There was no significant sex difference between two groups (p=0.373). Pediatric age group was the majority of patients for both groups. 6 patients (4.3%) were accepted as cardiopulmonary arrest at first application. Sixty-four (45.7%) of total patients were treated and discharged from ED. The remaining 64 (45.7%) patients were hospitalized. Nine of patients were died while admitting to hospital. Mortality ratio was 14.06% in hospitalized patients, total mortality ratio was 10.71% (n=15).

Conclusion:

We could not find any significant effect of scene of accident on mortality for fall from height patients.

Keywords: Epidemiology, falling from height, trauma