A compiled reference of 20 verified statistics on stair-related and fall injuries in the United States: how many stair injuries emergency departments treat, how the rate has changed, who gets hurt and how, and where falls sit among all injuries. Every figure is drawn from a named source, a peer-reviewed American Journal of Emergency Medicine study by Nationwide Children's Hospital researchers and the CDC, and independently checked before publishing.
Most common stair injury types
Share of stair-related emergency-department injuries by diagnosis, 1990-2012.
Source: American Journal of Emergency Medicine, Nationwide Children's Hospital (nationwidechildrens.org). Bars scaled to the 32.3% leader.
Key statistics
Key takeaways
Stair injuries are one of the most common reasons Americans visit an emergency department, and the rate is climbing. The numbers below trace the scale, the trend, who gets hurt, and what type of injury results.
US emergency departments treated an average of 1,076,558 stair-related injuries a year (1990-2012).
That is 37.8 stair injuries per 10,000 residents, and the rate rose 24% from 1996 to 2012.
67.2% of stair-injury ER visits were people ages 11 to 60.
Females were 62.4% of the injured and had a higher injury rate than males.
Sprains and strains (32.3%) and fractures (19.3%) were the most common injuries.
Falls are the leading cause of ER visits across every age group.
How we built this report
Every figure was compiled in September 2026 from named sources and verified against the original before publishing.
- Compiled from a peer-reviewed study and government data
Stair-injury figures from "Stair-related injuries treated in United States emergency departments" (Blazewick et al., American Journal of Emergency Medicine, 2018), a Nationwide Children's Hospital study using CPSC NEISS data; broader fall data from the CDC.
- Read from the study abstract itself
Every stair-injury figure was taken from the published abstract via the National Library of Medicine, not from a blog restating it.
- Only explicitly stated figures
We include only numbers a named source states directly, and attribute each inline at the point it appears.
- Independent review
Written by one co-founder, reviewed by the other before publishing.
Scope note: the stair-injury figures are national estimates from CPSC's NEISS, a statistically weighted sample of about 100 hospitals, for 1990-2012, the most recent full period the peer-reviewed study analyzed. The CDC fall figures are for older adults (age 65+) and are included to place stairs within the larger fall picture; they are labeled as such.
Stair and fall injuries, by the numbers
All 20 figures, grouped into three themes, each from a named source and independently verified against the original.
The scale, and the trend
Stairs send more than a million Americans to the emergency department every year, and the rate is rising. According to a study in the American Journal of Emergency Medicine (nationwidechildrens.org), US emergency departments treated an estimated 24,760,843 stair-related injuries from 1990 through 2012, and the injury rate rose 24% in the later part of that period.
Statistic 1
US emergency departments treated an estimated 24,760,843 stair-related injuries from 1990 through 2012.
American Journal of Emergency Medicine (Nationwide Children's Hospital)
Statistic 2
That averages 1,076,558 stair-related injuries treated per year.
American Journal of Emergency Medicine (Nationwide Children's Hospital)
Statistic 3
The rate was 37.8 stair-related injuries per 10,000 US residents.
American Journal of Emergency Medicine (Nationwide Children's Hospital)
Statistic 4
The annual injury rate fell 12.6% from 1990 to 1996, then rose 24.0% from 1996 to 2012.
American Journal of Emergency Medicine (Nationwide Children's Hospital)
Statistic 5
The study concluded that both the frequency and the rate of stair-related injuries are increasing.
American Journal of Emergency Medicine (Nationwide Children's Hospital)
What this means: A staircase is the single most-used safety-critical feature in most buildings, and the injury trend is moving the wrong way. For any operator with stairs in a rental, hotel, or common area, this is not a rare freak event; it is a steady, high-volume risk, which is exactly why stair condition belongs in a routine inspection rather than a post-incident one.
Who gets hurt, and how
Stair injuries are not confined to the very young or very old. According to the American Journal of Emergency Medicine study (nationwidechildrens.org), the highest rates are among young children and older adults, but 67.2% of emergency-department visits are people ages 11 to 60, and most patients are female.
Statistic 6
67.2% of emergency-department visits for stair-related injuries were by people ages 11 to 60.
American Journal of Emergency Medicine (Nationwide Children's Hospital)
Statistic 7
The highest injury rates occurred among younger children and older adults.
American Journal of Emergency Medicine (Nationwide Children's Hospital)
Statistic 8
Females accounted for 62.4% of stair-related injuries.
American Journal of Emergency Medicine (Nationwide Children's Hospital)
Statistic 9
Females had a higher injury rate than males: 46.5 versus 29.1 per 10,000.
American Journal of Emergency Medicine (Nationwide Children's Hospital)
Statistic 10
Sprains and strains were the most common injury type, at 32.3%.
American Journal of Emergency Medicine (Nationwide Children's Hospital)
Statistic 11
Soft-tissue injuries were 23.8% and fractures 19.3% of stair-related injuries.
American Journal of Emergency Medicine (Nationwide Children's Hospital)
Statistic 12
The lower extremities (42.1%) and head and neck (21.6%) were the most frequently injured body regions.
American Journal of Emergency Medicine (Nationwide Children's Hospital)
Statistic 13
Children age 10 and under experienced more head and neck injuries than other age groups.
American Journal of Emergency Medicine (Nationwide Children's Hospital)
Statistic 14
Older adult patients sustained fractures more frequently than younger age groups.
American Journal of Emergency Medicine (Nationwide Children's Hospital)
What this means: The working-age majority is the surprise: stairs hurt everyone, not just toddlers and seniors. For a hospitality or rental operator, that means the exposure spans the entire guest population, and the severe outcomes, fractures and head injuries, cluster exactly where a condition problem (a loose handrail, an inconsistent riser, poor lighting) turns a stumble into a hospital visit.
Falls in context, and prevention
Stairs are one channel of a much larger problem: falls are the leading cause of injury in the US. According to the CDC (cdc.gov), older-adult falls alone drive about 3 million emergency-department visits a year, and the stair study points to design and construction as the lever for prevention.
Statistic 15
About 3 million older adults are treated in emergency departments for falls each year.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Statistic 16
There are about 1 million fall-related hospitalizations among older adults each year.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Statistic 17
Nearly 319,000 older adults are hospitalized for hip fractures each year, most caused by falls.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Statistic 18
More than one in four older adults falls each year.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Statistic 19
One out of ten falls causes an injury serious enough to restrict activity or require medical care.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Statistic 20
The stair study concluded that prevention should focus on stair design and construction.
American Journal of Emergency Medicine (Nationwide Children's Hospital)
What this means: The prevention lever the researchers name, design and construction, is a condition question, not a behavior one. Consistent riser and tread dimensions, a secure and continuous handrail, adequate lighting, and slip-resistant surfaces are all things you can see and document. That makes stairs one of the highest-value items in a property condition inspection: common, rising, and severe when a fixable defect is present.
Cite this study
Academic or press use: copy a ready-made reference. RapidEye is the publisher.
Quick FAQ
How many stair-related injuries happen each year in the US?
US emergency departments treated an estimated 24,760,843 stair-related injuries from 1990 through 2012, an average of 1,076,558 a year, or 37.8 injuries per 10,000 residents, according to a study in the American Journal of Emergency Medicine (nationwidechildrens.org) by researchers at Nationwide Children's Hospital. The injury rate rose 24% from 1996 to 2012.
Who is most at risk of stair injuries?
The highest injury rates occur among young children and older adults, but the majority of emergency-department visits (67.2%) are by people ages 11 to 60, according to the American Journal of Emergency Medicine study (nationwidechildrens.org). Females account for 62.4% of stair-related injuries and have a higher rate than males (46.5 versus 29.1 per 10,000).
What are the most common stair injuries?
Sprains and strains (32.3%), soft-tissue injuries (23.8%), and fractures (19.3%) are the most common types, and the body regions most often injured are the lower extremities (42.1%) and the head and neck (21.6%), according to the American Journal of Emergency Medicine study (nationwidechildrens.org). Older adults sustain fractures more often than younger age groups.
How can stair falls be prevented?
The study authors point to stair design and construction as the priority, since the injury rate is rising: consistent riser and tread dimensions, secure handrails, good lighting, and slip-resistant surfaces. These are documentable, checkable conditions, which is why stairs are a core item in any property condition inspection.
Data sources
Every figure traces to one of these named sources, each checked against the original before publishing. We name each source and show its root domain, but do not hyperlink external sources; internal links stay live.
American Journal of Emergency Medicine (Nationwide Children's Hospital)Peer-reviewed study of stair-related injuries treated in US emergency departmentsnationwidechildrens.org
Centers for Disease Control and PreventionOlder adult fall data and factscdc.gov