Baby Baths Or Bathinettes
Twenty years of CPSC NEISS emergency-room records for this consumer product category, combined with demographic breakdowns, multi-year injury trends, and matching recall notices.
Nursery & Baby Products · CPSC Code 1544
Up 52% over 5 years
The verdict
Baby Baths Or Bathinettes carry a danger score of 41/100 (moderate risk), driven by roughly 213 ER-treated injuries a year that are rising by about 52% over the last five years.
- 41/100
- danger score (moderate risk)
- 213
- ER visits per year (avg)
- 16.9%
- end in hospital admission
- 0-4
- most-injured age group
Every figure is rendered from the CPSC NEISS record for product code 1544 - last data year 2024.
PlainSafety danger score
How this 41/100 score is built
The score is computed from four CPSC-derived factors for baby baths or bathinettes - no opinion, no editorializing:
- Injury volume213 ER visits/yr
- Severity (hospitalization rate)16.9%
- Fatality rate0.19%
- 5-year trend+52%
See the full methodology for the exact weighting of each factor.
What the CPSC Data Shows
Baby Baths Or Bathinettes (CPSC product code 1544, in the Nursery & Baby Products category) generate an estimated 213 emergency-room visits every year in the United States, adding up to roughly 4,254 ER-treated injuries across the 20-year span from 2005 to 2024. PlainSafety derives a danger score of 41/100 for this category (moderate risk), combining raw injury volume, demographic reach, severity of outcome, and multi-year trend. The five-year trajectory shows that injury counts are rising by about 52% over the last five years, with the busiest year on record being 2011 (548 estimated ER visits) and the quietest 2009 (12 estimated visits).
The single most common ER diagnosis for baby baths or bathinettes is internal injury to the head, accounting for approximately 1,076 visits across the 20-year NEISS window, followed by submersion to the all parts body (445 cases). The 0-4 age group absorbs the largest share of injuries, about 3,565 cases over the NEISS window, and females appear slightly more often than the opposite sex in that cohort. Severity outcomes from the NEISS disposition field show that 16.9% of ER visits involving this product end in hospital admission or transfer, and a small fraction (0.19%) result in fatality.
Beyond the hospital-sampled NEISS projections, this page also aggregates 41 consumer incident reports filed directly on SaferProducts.gov, plus 20 anonymized ER narratives - together forming a layered picture of how baby baths or bathinettes fail in real households. Every figure on this page comes from CPSC-published data: NEISS projects national estimates from a probability sample of about 100 U.S. hospital emergency departments, while SaferProducts.gov collects voluntary reports from consumers, manufacturers, and clinicians. The danger score, trend indicators, and demographic breakdowns update automatically when CPSC releases a new yearly NEISS file, which is why this page is dated 2024-12-31. For regulatory context, consult CPSC recall notices and the SaferProducts.gov public database linked below.
Annual Injury Estimates (2005–2024)
Source: CPSC NEISS national estimates CPSC NEISS national estimates Injuries represent ER-treated cases only
Who Gets Injured?
| Age Group | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-4 | 1,584 | 1,981 | |
| 5-14 | 6 | 115 | |
| 15-24 | 0 | 16 | |
| 25-34 | 0 | 15 | |
| 35-44 | 76 | 205 | |
| 45-54 | 0 | 100 | |
| 55-64 | 0 | 80 | |
| 65-74 | 0 | 77 |
Most Common Injuries
| Body Part | Diagnosis | Est. Injuries |
|---|---|---|
| Head | Internal Injury | |
| All Parts Body | Submersion | |
| Lower Trunk | Burn, Scald | |
| Not Stated/unk | Other | |
| Head | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Face | Laceration | |
| Face | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Head | Other | |
| Face | Other | |
| Lower Trunk | Strain, Sprain | |
| Elbow | Fracture | |
| Internal | Aspiration | |
| Upper Leg | Other | |
| Upper Trunk | Strain, Sprain | |
| Finger | Laceration |
Severity Breakdown
ER Visit Narratives
Real anonymized emergency room reports from the CPSC NEISS database.
3MONTH OLD F PRESENTS TO ED WTH PARENTS AFTER A FALL. PT. WAS BEING LIFTED OUT OF A BABY TUB WHEN MOTHER ACCIDENTLY DROPPED HER 1-2 FEET. PT. HIT HER FOREHEAD ON THE BABY TUB. DX: ACCIDENTAL FALL
8 MOF FELL OUT OF INFANT PLASTIC TUB INSIDE SHOWER HITTING FALCE AGAINST THE TILE, DX; FACIAL CONTUSION, NASAL ABRASION
4MOM WAS IN A SMALL BABY BATHTUB IN THE SHOWER, MOM WAS MOVING THE BATHTUB AND CHILD FELL OUT ABOUT SIX INCHES, STRIKING HEAD DX: CLOSED HEAD INJURY
3MOF PRESENTS AFTER SHE FELL FROM HER MOTHER'S ARM WHEN COMING OUT OF THE BATH AND HIT HER FOREHEAD. HAS FOREHEAD HEMATOMA. DX: MINOR HEAD TRAUMA
2MOM PRESNTS WITH BLUE LIPS AND HANDS AFTER MOM WAS BATHING IN THE BABY BATHTUB WITH STILL WATER WHEN SHE TURNED AWAY FOR 3 SECOND SAS OTHER CHILD GOT HER ATTENTION AND BABY'S HEAD SLIPPED AND SUBMERGED INTO WATER. MOM TOOK HIM OUT AND NOTED PEIRORAL CYANOSIS AND FINGERS. HE WAS ALSO BURPING A LOT. DX: INJURY DUE TO SUBMERSION
8MOM IN A BATHING BUCKET ON A COUNTERTOP AND FELL OUT HITTING LAMINATE FLOOR DX: CHI
2MOM WITH A SHOULDER ABRASION AND A FACE LACERATION. PATIENT WAS IN THE BABY BATH INSIDE THE BATHTUB AROUND 2015 TONIGHT WHEN THE GLASS SHOWER DOOR FELL AND LANDED ON THE PATIENT.
70YOF CAUGHT FINGER ON UNDERSIDE OF PLASTIC BABY BATH, DX FINGER LACERATION
7MOM PRESENTS TO THE ED AFTER A NEAR DROWNING IN THE BATHTUB. PER MOM PATIENT WAS BUCKLED IN BATHTUB CHAIR AND FOUND FACE DOWN AFTER LEAVING CHILD UNATTENDED FOR 5-10 MINUTES TO CHECK ON ANOTHER CHILD. DX: SUBMERSION INJURY
3MOF WAS IN HER INFANT TUB, IN SINK, FELL OUT AND LANDED IN TUB, DX HEAD INJURY, SCALP HEMATOMA
1 MOF GETTING A BATH IN A PLASTIC BABY TUB AND HIT HEAD ON THE SIDE OF THE TUB. DX SCALP LACERATION
8MOM WAS IN AN INFANT BATHTUB INSIDE OF A LARGER BATHTUB AND FELL OUT TO THE LARGER BATHTUB DX: CHI *
Consumer Incident Reports
Reports filed by consumers on SaferProducts.gov.
My 2 month old was using the fisher price 4 in 1 bathtub in the phase two position as she had outgrown the newborn insert. She began bleeding on her right pinky toe while sitting in the tub and kicking/splashing. She developed a sore/cut on her right pinky toe and redness on her left pinky toe which required one ER visit and one urgent care visit with two separate antibiotics due to infection. The tub was being used in an empty adult tub with 1 on 1 supervision.
When I put my 3 almost 4 month old infant son in the Frida Baby 4-in-1 Grow-with-Me Bath Tub in the infant designated setting, he started to suffocate because the spot where the head goes is way too low. His face was changing colors and we could hear him struggling. Theres also no other support in the infant position other than a small dimple in the plastic. When we immediately changed it for the next size up setting on the bath, there was ZERO head support and if I needed to look away from my son for a second he could have easily slipped and fallen into the water and drowned. While he was seated in this position we had to adjust him several times because he kept slipping and was having trouble breathing. Myself and my fiancé used it as intended inside of our own bathtub. When we went to the reviews of this highly rated bath tub, but actually looked at the 1 star reviews we were horrified that this was a common occurrence! I wanted to report this as a baby could easily drown or suffocate in this bath tub. We were lucky both of us were there to bathe him and to make sure he was okay.
We purchased this product for our newborn, read the directions, and inflated it per them. When we tried to bathe her in it, we found it had no head support. Coupled that with the inflated cushion, she rolled into standing water that was right next to her head. My husband had to hold her head to make sure she didn't drown.
The mat in the Frida baby bathtub is terrible! It molds and starts to smell no matter how you clean and dry it.
I was bathing my daughter in the Summer Infant Lil Luxuries Whirpool spa and tub today. She got upset, arched her back and dropped her head on the insert/plastic recliner for the tub. The recliner insert has a cloth cover that completely collapsed when she dropped her head back down. She nearly fell on her head in the tub. The cloth cover slips over the plastic recliner and attaches with an elastic band on each side, in the middle of the cover. The head portion is what collapsed on us.
I was giving my granddaughter a bath, the bath seat suddenly tipped which had never happened before causeing my granddaughter to go fave first into the bath water. Thank the lord o was right there and able to grab her immediately and remove her from the bath to make sure she was ok. It took a second for her to catch her breath and stop coughing from inhaling water. Since then she is terrified of bath time. She used to love to take a bath and play in the water and after this its a nightmare and she screams the entire time.
I was bathing my infant son of 4 months in this bath tub,, when he tilted his head back as I was washing his hair this tub tipped backwards this also happened when he was about 3 months old also,,, you can release the ends of the tub so that a toddler can sit in it but this is not an option for my son as he is still a supported sitter and cannot yet sit independently.
The Fisher Price 4-in-1 Sling 'n Seat Tub grew mold underneath the warning stickers that don't peel off. The warning/caution/etc type of stickers that Fisher Price has inside the tub and on the seat slowly started having water peel away at the sticker. The top layer of the sticker eventually fell off, revealing mold that was growing underneath the sticker. I reached out to Fisher Price to express these concerns that babies are being bathed in water contaminated with hidden mold. They seemed unconcerned and only responded by offering to send a replacement part. When I said they were missing the issue of a potential product defect they stated "I understand your concern about the mold in the product. This may have been a manufacturing issue but rest assured that we are sending you a full product replacement that you can use without issues"
Showing 8 of 41 reports.
Product Recalls
Search for active and past recalls related to baby baths or bathinettes on the CPSC website.
Frequently Asked Questions
How dangerous are baby baths or bathinettes?
Based on 20 years of CPSC data, baby baths or bathinettes have a danger score of 41/100 (moderate risk). An estimated 213 ER-treated injuries occur annually in the U.S. related to this product category.
What are the most common injuries from baby baths or bathinettes?
The most common injury is internal injury to the head, accounting for approximately 1,076 injuries over 20 years.
Are injuries from baby baths or bathinettes increasing or decreasing?
Up 52% over 5 years.
Who is most at risk for baby baths or bathinettes injuries?
The 0-4 age group accounts for the most injuries, with approximately 3,565 cases recorded over 20 years. Females are more frequently injured in this age group.
What happens when someone is injured by baby baths or bathinettes?
Of all ER visits involving baby baths or bathinettes, approximately 16.9% result in hospital admission. The majority of patients (83.1%) are treated and released from the emergency department.
How can I report a safety problem with baby baths or bathinettes?
You can file a consumer incident report at SaferProducts.gov, the official CPSC reporting portal. Reports help the CPSC identify emerging hazards and trigger investigations or recalls. You can also call the CPSC hotline at 1-800-638-2772.
Related Products in Nursery & Baby Products
Safety Guides
What this means for you
Treat the 41/100 score as relative risk between products, not your personal odds of injury.
- See where this category ranks against every other tracked product. Full rankings
- Injuries cluster in the 0-4 age group, take extra care if that describes your household.
- Check for active recalls on this product before you assume it is safe. CPSC recalls
NEISS estimates ER-treated injuries from a national probability sample of hospitals; they do not capture injuries treated elsewhere or not treated at all.
Data: CPSC National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) 2005–2024 and SaferProducts.gov consumer incident reports. Injury estimates are based on a nationally representative probability sample of U.S. hospital emergency departments. This page is for informational purposes only and is not affiliated with the CPSC.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, scored, and verified.