FRIDAY, Aug. 18, 2023 (HealthDay News) — Approximately 2,300 pediatric head injuries from contact with ceiling fans are seen in U.S. emergency departments each year, according to research published online Aug. 17 in Pediatrics.

Holly Hughes Garza, D.V.M., M.P.H., from Dell Children’s Trauma and Injury Research Center in Austin, Texas, and colleagues describe pediatric traumatic head injuries from ceiling fans seen in emergency departments in the United States.

The researchers found that from 2013 to 2021, there were approximately 2,300 pediatric head injuries from contact with ceiling fans in U.S. emergency departments per year. A total of 640 National Electronic Injury Surveillance System records met inclusion criteria, corresponding to an estimated 20,523 injuries. No clear trend was seen over time. The median child age was 5 years, and there were two peaks in age distribution: younger than 1 year and 4 years. The risk for injury by being lifted or tossed up by a caregiver was increased for children aged younger than 3 years versus older children (risk ratio, 2.2); head injuries with this mechanism were also seen for children aged as young as 1 month. Older children were injured most often while on furniture, especially bunk beds. Laceration was the most common primary diagnosis (60 percent); one facial fracture and two skull fractures were reported, both in children younger than 1 year of age, one of which was caused by a metal ceiling fan. Eighty percent of injuries occurred in a home setting; 98 percent of patients were treated in the emergency department and released.

“Numerous opportunities exist to prevent childhood head injuries from ceiling fans; families and clinicians should be aware of the dangers,” the authors write.

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