秋田県における雪下ろし外傷の現況

Falls from Heights While Clearing Snow in Akita Prefecture

　目的：この研究の目的は秋田県の雪下ろし外傷の現況を報告することである．

　対象と方法：対象は2009年12月から2012年3月までに雪下ろし外傷で救急搬送された352例である．

　結果：発生時期は1月が最も多く(200人；56.8％)，県南内陸部での受傷が最多(202人；57.4％)であった．年齢別では65歳以上が約半数を占めていた．受傷原因は223人が屋根からの転落で，梯子からの転落が112人であった．134人(38.1％)が脊椎損傷を伴い，16人が亡くなっていた．

　まとめ：降雪量が10cm以上で真冬日に多く発生する傾向にあった．

　Background：Clearing snow from rooftops is a common activity in areas of heavy snow accumulation.　Although it has been reported that fall from heights while clearing snow occasionally causes severe and fatal problems, there have been very few reports.

　Method：The study population consisted of 352 patients who fell from heights while clearing snow in Akita Prefecture and presented to the emergency department between December 2009 and March 2012.　The patients' mean age was 63.5 years old (range：20-92 years old).

　Outcome：The largest proportion of the falls occurred in January (56.8%；200 patients).　The most common region where the falls occurred was the inland part of the southern district, which accounted for 57.4% of the falls (202 patients).　Individuals 65 years and older comprised 44.9% of the patients (158 patients).　The most common mechanism of the injuries was a fall from a rooftop, which accounted for 63.4% of the falls (223 patients), and it was followed by a fall from a ladder (31.8%；112 patients).　The most common site of the injuries was the spine injury (38.1%；134 patients), which was followed by the upper and lower extremities (26.4%；93 patients).　Sixteen of the patients died.

　Conclusion：Patients were more likely to have fallen from heights while clearing snow on days on which there was greater than 10 cm of snow accumulation and when the average temperature was below freezing.