For people aged 65 years or older, the average health system cost per fall injury in the Republic of Finland and Australia are US$ 3611 and US$ 1049 respectively. The financial costs from fall-related injuries are substantial. In addition, those individuals who fall and suffer a disability, particularly older people, are at a major risk for subsequent long-term care and institutionalization. While nearly 40% of the total DALYs lost due to falls worldwide occurs in children, this measurement may not accurately reflect the impact of fall-related disabilities for older individuals who have fewer life years to lose. Globally, falls are responsible for over 38 million DALYs (disability-adjusted life years) lost each year (2), and result in more years lived with disability than transport injury, drowning, burns and poisoning combined. Though not fatal, approximately 37.3 million falls severe enough to require medical attention occur each year. In all regions of the world, death rates are highest among adults over the age of 60 years. Over 80% of fall-related fatalities occur in low- and middle-income countries, with regions of the Western Pacific and South East Asia accounting for 60% of these deaths. An estimated 684 000 fatal falls occur each year, making it the second leading cause of unintentional injury death, after road traffic injuries. Globally, falls are a major public health problem. For example, of children in the People's Republic of China, for every death due to a fall, there are 4 cases of permanent disability, 13 cases requiring hospitalization for more than 10 days, 24 cases requiring hospitalization for 1–9 days and 690 cases seeking medical care or missing work/school.
Fall-related injuries may be fatal or non-fatal (1) though most are non-fatal.
A fall is defined as an event which results in a person coming to rest inadvertently on the ground or floor or other lower level.
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