Investigation of injuries sustained from falls down stairs

Abstract

Interpretation of injuries sustained from fatal falls involving stairs is a challenge encountered by death investigation teams regularly. The high incidence of this occurrence is because stairs are a common entity in society. Without a medical evaluation of an individual's injuries, it is difficult to determine whether a fall from stairs contributed to how the individual died. The purpose of this study is to characterize the injuries of individuals that were sustained from a confirmed fatal fall involving stairs within our jurisdiction (Ontario, Canada) during 2014–2020. In a retrospective cross-sectional observation study, we examined 159 cases using both postmortem imaging and routine autopsy approaches. Our findings showed the head was the most common anatomical region injured. The most common injuries observed in the head included skull fracture(s) (most commonly the temporal, parietal and occipital bones), subarachnoid hemorrhages, and brain contusions. Anatomical regions less commonly injured included the extremities, thorax, and pelvis. This study identified an association between the presence of intracranial hemorrhage and those 65-years-old and younger; brain injury in the absence of pre-existing medical conditions; and brain injury for individuals that had a blood alcohol concentration between 0 and 80mg/100 mL. Extracranial skeletal trauma, as defined by skeletal trauma apart from the head region, was observed in 62% of cases. Extracranial skeletal trauma was also found to be strongly associated with individuals over 65-years-old. Overall, our study affirms that traumatic head injury is the primary cause of death from falls down stairs. Also, we provide information on rare injuries from falls down stairs, and indirectly, identify which body locations appear protected from injury during falls. These findings may aid in the interpretation of whether injuries in this setting are compatible with accidental or non-accidental trauma.