[An analysis of fall accidents in ambulance service records of fire department in Japan: investigation of time and location].

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to examine fall accidents in Japan by analyzing records of ambulance responses. METHOD: The survey period was one year, from January to December, 2007. During this period, a total of 31,002 ambulance responses to fall accidents were recorded by 37 fire departments throughoutiapan. The ambulance responses to fall accidents were analyzed in terms of sex, age, place, time of fall, and degree of injury. RESULTS: The number of ambulance responses per population sample of 1000 people was 1.9 cases among people ranging in age from 20 to 64, 6.3 cases for people ranging in age from 65 to 74 and 15.9 cases for people aged 75 years or over. When excluding males in the 75 year or older group, more falls occurred from December to February than in the other seasons. There were also more falls in December than in any other month. In addition, more falls occurred in houses than at other locations. Roadside locations followed houses regarding the location of falls for males. In addition, public places were the second most common location for females. The degree of injury was higher for females than for males. Females 75 years of age or older sustained 2.8 times more serious injuries than females ranging from 20 to 64 years of age. CONCLUSION: The causes and other characteristics of fall accidents were thus found to vary according to sex and/or age.