Citation

Webber GMB. J. Occup. Accid. 1985; 7(2): 83-99.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1985, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

In 1980, deaths from accidental falls on stairs or steps represented 7% of all non-transport accidental deaths and about 15% of all accidental falls. Of the 652 deaths on stairs or steps, 560 occurred in the home, and a further 37 occurred in public buildings, 27 in residential institutions and 4 in industrial premises.Study of the Registrar General's statistical series revealed that there had been problems of recording certain information on death certificates relating to falls so that any time trends need to be viewed with caution. The effects of these problems on the trends could not be quantified. The recorded data showed that the number of deaths from falls on stairs or steps had declined from about 950 per annum in the mid 1950s to about 650 per annum in 1980. The incidence rate dropped by about one-third over the period. Apart from the active adult age group 15-64 years for whom the incidence rate had increased, the incidence rate for other age groups, particularly the elderly, had declined. Improved emergency treatment and care of the elderly are possible reasons for the decrease in incidence rate but reasons for an escalating problem for the active adult group need to be identified.The paper includes a summary of the recommendations since 1944 for dimensions of private and common stairs in residential accommodation. Neither the Registrar General's statistical series, nor the death certificates or inquest notes examined, provided any direct means of assessing the impact of British Standards for Stairs BS 585 or The Building Regulations on the incidence rate of fatalities. Other methodology would need to be developed to estimate the relative accident risk, fatal or non-fatal, associated with stair design elements that occur frequently in the building stock.