More than 5,000 children and teens are injured each year in falls from windows, according to a new study published this month in the journal Pediatrics. The study reported that the number of children treated in emergency departments in the United States for falls from windows neared 100,000 between the years 1990 and 2008.
The study found that the problem is not limited to urban or high rise buildings, but rather many children are falling from first and second story windows. Even falls from the first story windows resulted in injuries serious enough to warrant a trip to the hospital. Not surprisingly, most children fell from windows during warm weather.
Approximately 2/3 of the reported injuries occurred among children younger than 5. Children under the age of 4 were most likely to suffer head injuries and to be hospitalized for their injuries than were older children. Fewer than 1 percent of the falls resulted in death, however, this figure is likely underestimated because not all children who die from their injuries are brought to the hospital. The study is the first nationally representative study of such injuries. Researchers studied data compiled by the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System, maintained by the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission.
Dr. Gary A. Smith, study author and director of the Center For Injury Research and Policy at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio offered the following advice for parents of children younger than 5: (1) use window guards or locks; (2) do not allow any window to be open more than four inches; and (3) move furniture away from windows so children cannot climb on it. Dr. Smith recommends that parents of children older than 5 should educate children and teens of the risk of climbing out of a window or jumping from it.
About the Author: Annie Reynolds practices law in Philadelphia, at the law firm of Sheridan & Murray. Annie is an advocate for children’s safety and specializes in personal injury and medical malpractice law. For more information, please visit the firm’s website – www.sheridanandmurray.com
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