Incidence and risk factors of fall injuries among infants: a study in Greece.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the incidence of fall injuries among infants in Greece, overall and by type of nursery equipment. DESIGN: Review of data from a large injury database. SETTING: The Emergency Department Injury Surveillance System in Greece. PATIENTS: A total of 2672 injured infants. INTERVENTIONS: Specially trained health visitors performed in-person interviews with the children's guardians, using a precoded questionnaire. The results of an independent survey of 777 mothers of noninjured children younger than 2 years attending the same emergency departments were used to allow quantification of the role of specific nursery equipment in the causation of infant fall injuries. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Annual rate of injury by falling in infants, overall and by cause. RESULTS: About 4400 infant fall injuries occur annually in Greece, corresponding to an annual incidence rate of 44 injuries per 1000 infants. The incidence of falls increases with increasing infant age. A high percentage of severe injuries was detected, most of them concussions (14.3%) and fractures (9.4%). Approximately 10% of infants with fall-related injuries required hospitalization. More than 36% of fall injuries involved nursery equipment. Infant walker use was associated with a higher incidence of falls (about 9 per 1000 infant-years), and these falls occasionally involved stairs and caused serious injuries. Infant bouncers, strollers, and changing tables were all associated with a similar incidence of falls (about 4 per 1000 infant-years). CONCLUSIONS: Falls are a common cause of serious infant injuries, and nursery equipment is frequently involved in the injury-causing event.