Biomedical Research

Introduction: Falls from trees constitute an important and fatal form of injury. The present study aimed to assess the demographic and clinical features of apricot tree falls. Materials and methods: The patients who were admitted to the emergency department with a fall from an apricot tree between June 2015 and September 2015 were recorded prospectively. The age, gender, fall height, fall time, emergency department admission time, vital signs, injury types, treatments and outcomes, Glasgow coma score, and injury severity score, were studied for each patient. Results: There were 30 falls from apricot trees and all of them were male. The mean age was 29 ± 18.9 years, and 33% of the patients were in the pediatric age group. The patients suffered from extremity (46.7%), spinal system (30%), chest (13.3%), abdomino-pelvic (6.7%), and head (3.3%) injuries. Arm and forearm fractures were ranked first among all the fractures. The majority of the patients (70%) were managed and discharged from emergency department. None of the patients died, and all of them recovered fully. Conclusion: Falls from apricot trees usually lead to only minor injuries. The emergency department has the most important role in the management of these injuries. A considerable amount of patients are children, therefore, clear and feasible rules regarding child workers will reduce falls from apricot trees.

Author(s): Hakan Oguzturk, Kasim Turgut, Muhammet Gökhan Turtay, M Ediz Sarihan, Ali Gur, Inan Beydilli, Sukru Gurbuz
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