Stilts
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.
Toys & Children's Recreation · CPSC Code 1349
Stable over 5 years
The verdict
Stilts carry a danger score of 27/100 (low risk), driven by roughly 153 ER-treated injuries a year that are roughly flat over the last five years.
- 27/100
- danger score (low risk)
- 153
- ER visits per year (avg)
- 1.4%
- end in hospital admission
- 15-24
- most-injured age group
Every figure is rendered from the CPSC NEISS record for product code 1349 - last data year 2024.
PlainSafety danger score
How this 27/100 score is built
The score is computed from four CPSC-derived factors for stilts - no opinion, no editorializing:
- Injury volume153 ER visits/yr
- Severity (hospitalization rate)1.4%
- Fatality rate0.00%
- 5-year trend+6%
See the full methodology for the exact weighting of each factor.
What the CPSC Data Shows
Stilts (CPSC product code 1349, in the Toys & Children's Recreation category) generate an estimated 153 emergency-room visits every year in the United States, adding up to roughly 3,055 ER-treated injuries across the 20-year span from 2005 to 2024. PlainSafety derives a danger score of 27/100 for this category (low risk), combining raw injury volume, demographic reach, severity of outcome, and multi-year trend. The five-year trajectory shows that injury counts are roughly flat over the last five years, with the busiest year on record being 2005 (398 estimated ER visits) and the quietest 2020 (26 estimated visits).
The single most common ER diagnosis for stilts is fracture to the lower arm, accounting for approximately 290 visits across the 20-year NEISS window, followed by other to the lower trunk (179 cases). The 15-24 age group absorbs the largest share of injuries, about 751 cases over the NEISS window, and males appear slightly more often than the opposite sex in that cohort. Severity outcomes from the NEISS disposition field show that 1.4% of ER visits involving this product end in hospital admission or transfer.
Beyond the hospital-sampled NEISS projections, this page also aggregates 0 consumer incident reports filed directly on SaferProducts.gov, plus 20 anonymized ER narratives - together forming a layered picture of how stilts 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 | 0 | 17 | |
| 5-14 | 130 | 607 | |
| 15-24 | 607 | 144 | |
| 25-34 | 444 | 191 | |
| 35-44 | 236 | 21 | |
| 45-54 | 289 | 135 | |
| 55-64 | 16 | 64 | |
| 65-74 | 80 | 0 | |
| 75+ | 0 | 75 |
Most Common Injuries
| Body Part | Diagnosis | Est. Injuries |
|---|---|---|
| Lower Arm | Fracture | |
| Lower Trunk | Other | |
| Ankle | Strain, Sprain | |
| Foot | Strain, Sprain | |
| Lower Trunk | Strain, Sprain | |
| Head | Internal Injury | |
| Wrist | Fracture | |
| Knee | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Shoulder | Strain, Sprain | |
| Face | Laceration | |
| Knee | Other | |
| Head | Laceration | |
| Elbow | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Lower Leg | Laceration | |
| Upper Arm | Fracture |
Severity Breakdown
ER Visit Narratives
Real anonymized emergency room reports from the CPSC NEISS database.
24YOM STATES THAT HE HAD A FALL 4 FEET YESTERDAY FROM STILTS AND LANDED ONTO HIS LEFT KNEE DX: TRAUMATIC BURSITIS OF LEFT KNEE
37YOM, WAS USING STILTS, 3-4FT OFF THE GROUND WHEN FELL BACKWARD STRIKING HEAD, NO LOC OR BLOOD THINNERS, DX: HEAD INJURY; STRAIN OF NECK MUSCLE; ACUTE LOW BACK PAIN
25YOM WAS WALKING ON STILTS AND HEARD A POP IN HIS KNEE. DX KNEE PAIN
5 YOF WITH A CUT TO EYEBROW FROM STILTS DX: LAC
38YOF PRESENTS WITH ANKLE PAIN AFTER A TRIP AND FALL WHILE WALKING ON STILTS. DX: ACUTE ANKLE PAIN
5YOM WAS WALKING ON STILTS ON PAVEMENT FELL AND INJURED LT HAND DX HAND LACERATION
10YOF FELL OFF STILTS AND LOST BALANCE FALLING TO THE GROUND DX ACUTE BILATERAL LOW BACK PAIN
31 YOM C/O FOOT PAIN S/P FELL OFF STILTS. DX: FOOT PAIN
16YOF WAS WALKING ON STILTS AND FELL OFF TO THE WOODEN FLOOR DX: LACERATION TO FACE
11YOF WAS WALKING ON SLITS IN THE PARK WHEN SHE FELL ONTO HER TAILBONE. DX: COMPRESSION FRACTURE OF THORACIC VERTEBRA.
18YOM AT HOME ON STILTS FELL FORWARD LANDED ON ARMSDX FALL ACUTE BILATERAL NONDISPLACED OCCULT PROXIMAL RADIAL HEAD FRACTURE B/L WRIST SPRAIN
11YOF FELL OFF STILTS IN GYM CLASS AT SCHOOL AND INJURED RIGHT ANKLE/FOOT. DX: FOOT INJURY; ANKLE INJURY.
Product Recalls
Search for active and past recalls related to stilts on the CPSC website.
Frequently Asked Questions
How dangerous are stilts?
Based on 20 years of CPSC data, stilts have a danger score of 27/100 (low risk). An estimated 153 ER-treated injuries occur annually in the U.S. related to this product category.
What are the most common injuries from stilts?
The most common injury is fracture to the lower arm, accounting for approximately 290 injuries over 20 years.
Are injuries from stilts increasing or decreasing?
Stable over 5 years.
Who is most at risk for stilts injuries?
The 15-24 age group accounts for the most injuries, with approximately 751 cases recorded over 20 years. Males are more frequently injured in this age group.
What happens when someone is injured by stilts?
Of all ER visits involving stilts, approximately 1.4% result in hospital admission. The majority of patients (98.7%) are treated and released from the emergency department.
How can I report a safety problem with stilts?
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 Toys & Children's Recreation
Safety Guides
What this means for you
Treat the 27/100 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 15-24 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.
