For this analysis, the holiday season was defined as November 1--January 31, when decorating or related activities (e.g., stringing and removing outdoor lights) usually occur...

During 2000--2003, a total of 225 fall-related injuries that occurred to persons treated in participating EDs were attributed to holiday decorating or related activities, yielding a weighted national estimate of 17,465 (95% CI = 12,751--22,179) injuries, an average of 5,822 injuries per season. The overall injury rate was 8.1 per 100,000 population (CI = 5.9--10.3). The majority of injuries (62%) occurred to persons aged 20--49 years. Persons aged >49 years sustained 24%, and persons aged 0--19 years sustained 15% of fall-related injuries.

Males sustained more injuries than females (58% versus 42%, respectively), although the rates for males (9.6) and females (6.7) did not differ significantly (relative rate [RR] = 1.4; CI = 0.8--2.1) (Table). The majority of falls were from ladders (e.g., while hanging holiday lights), followed by roofs (e.g., while mounting an artificial Christmas tree on the roof), furniture (e.g., while standing on a table decorating a Christmas tree, standing on a chair hanging holiday decorations, or standing on a step stool when hanging a tree topper), stairs, and porches. Other falls were caused by tripping over or slipping on holiday-related objects (e.g., tree skirts or ornaments). Among 46% of injured persons, injuries occurred to the extremities (i.e., arm/hand and leg/foot); most persons (88%) examined in EDs were treated and released, and 12% were hospitalized. Fractures were the most commonly reported injury (34%); approximately half (51%) of the fractures were caused by falls from ladders. Of those who fell from ladders, nearly half (47%) were hospitalized.