الفهرس 
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Abstract
Fall from height is a serious public health problem with potentially devastating effects and far-reaching consequences. Fall from height injuries can cause death or lasting disability that can significantly impact victims, their families, their communities and the state.The present study aimed to throw light upon deaths due to fall from height from the medico-legal point of view.* The present work:(1)Reviewed the literature related to fatal injuries of fall from height regarding: (definition, classification, incidence of fall, risk factor for falling, factors determining pattern of injury of fall from height, types of injuries of fall from height, manner of death, mechanism of death, autopsy findings of fall injuries, falls in special population and prevention of fall).
(2)Studied and analyzed the available autopsy reports of the cases of fall from height that had been referred to Cairo Department of Forensic Medicine (Zenhom morgue), Ministry of Justice, Egypt, during the period January 2009 – December 2013. In each report the study concentrated upon the following information (The age, gender, residence, occupation, type of fall from height, medical intervention, manner of fall, mechanism of death, and lastly the toxicological analysis, if present).* The results of the study have showed that: (1) Fall from height deaths constituted 3.25% of all cases (8,317) that were autopsied in the same period of the study. (2) Majority of cases (59.5%) was in age group (19-40) years. (3) Males represented 55.9% of cases whereas females represented 44.1% of cases. (4) Fall from height deaths were more common in urban areas (55.2%) than rural areas (44.8%). (5) The majority of cases (75.6%) sustained blunt trauma while 14.8% of cases were injured by combined (blunt and sharp) trauma. (6) Home was the most common (50.7%) scene for fall injury, followed by work place (34.1%). (7) The most common injured anatomical region were multiple injuries (67.4%), followed by the head (27.0%), abdomen (2.2%), chest (1.9%), and spine (1.5%).(8) Manner of death from fall from height was accidental in 102 (37.8%) cases, suicide in 90 (33.3%) cases and homicidal in 78 (28.9%) cases.(9)There was no medical intervention in 69.3% of cases. The majority of cases (87.4%) sustained high falls (height >20 feet).
In conclusion, the present study reported that fatal fall from height was very important due to its considerable incidence, it affects the victims during the period of peak activity and productivity so that it causes harmful effects to the family and society, and, also due to high prevalence of accidental cases.