Spotlight on children’s falls.

Published: 2025-09-18.

This data blog highlights key findings from the Public Health Agency of Canada’s report Injury in Review, 2025 Edition: Spotlight on Children’s Falls.

Injuries from events like falls affect the lives of many children in Canada. Spotlight on Children’s Falls is the fourth report in the Injury in Review series. It provides key national statistics on fall-related injuries among children aged 0 to 9 years, from 2010 to 2023. Information comes from 3 administrative health databases:

  • the Canadian Vital Statistics Death Database (CVS: D; Statistics Canada) for deaths
  • the Discharge Abstract Database (DAD; Canadian Institute for Health Information) for hospitalizations
  • the National Ambulatory Care Reporting System (NACRS; Canadian Institute for Health Information) for emergency department visits

 

 

The report also provides a summary of fall-related injury data from Canadian Hospitals Injury Reporting and Prevention Program (CHIRPP). The CHIRPP database includes patient and caregiver descriptions of injury events. This gives a better understanding of circumstances associated with fall injuries.

 

Key findings

Deaths (CVS: D)

In Canada, between 2010 and 2023:

  • Unintentional injuries led to 1,859 deaths among children aged 0 to 9 years.
  • There were 48 fall-related deaths reported in Canada involving children aged 0 to 9 years.
  • Nearly half of fall-related deaths were from children falling from, out of, or through buildings or structures.

Hospitalizations and emergency department visits (DAD and NACRS)

  • Between 2010 and 2023, falls were the leading cause of injury-related hospitalizations and emergency department (ED) visits among Canadian children aged 0 to 9 years, accounting for an estimated 4,590 hospitalizations and 187,709 emergency department visits each year.
  • In recent years, hospitalizations and ED visit rates for fall-related injuries have decreased in children aged 0 to 9 years.
  • Fall-related hospitalizations and ED visit rates were higher among boys than girls across all age groups.

Canadian Hospitals Injury Reporting and Prevention Program (CHIRPP)

Based on 2011-2024 data from CHIRPP, the context of fall-related injuries varied with age.

  • Falls from windows and balconies were most likely to result in hospital admission. These include children pushing through the window screen, climbing on furniture or on a ledge, jumping off a balcony, and climbing or sitting on balcony rails.
  • A high percentage of falls among infants under 1 year caused traumatic brain injuries (TBIs). In this age group, almost three-quarters of falls (69.5%: infants aged 0 to 4 months; and 68.0%: infants aged 5 to 11 months) from baby carriers, grocery carts, change tables and baby seats, resulted in a TBI.
  • The falls most likely to lead to fractures were from trees, playground equipment, and trampolines—in nearly half of these cases (trees: 50.0%; playground equipment: 48.9%; and trampolines: 48.9%) the child was diagnosed with a fracture.

 

Common situations leading to fall-related ED visits, by age group:

  • 0 to 4 months: Falls while being carried or supported by caregivers
  • 5 to 11 months: Falls involving furniture and beds, baby products, and while being carried or supported by caregivers
  • 1 to 4 years: Falls involving playground equipment, furniture and beds, stairs, and same-level falls
  • 5 to 9 years: Falls involving playground equipment, sports and recreation, and same-level falls

 

Infographic presenting data on Injuries related to children's falls in Canada.

Infographic presenting data on Injuries related to children’s falls in Canada.

Download the infographic
(PDF format, 1 page)

For a PDF copy of the report, download the Injury in Review: Spotlight on Children’s Falls or contact the Injury Surveillance team directly at injury.surveillance-surveillance.blessures@phac-aspc.gc.ca.