OBJECTIVES: The objectives of this study were to describe the characteristics of patients experiencing in-hospital falls, to identify the prevalence of anemia, and to evaluate whether anemia contributes to longer length of stay. METHODS: A retrospective study of patients experiencing an in-hospital fall between January 1, 1998 and June 30, 2003 was conducted at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. To be included, patients had to be =18 years of age, admitted into the hospital for >24 hours, and have a hemoglobin (Hgb) test during their stay. Demographics, comorbidities, Hgb tests, and drug groups were extracted from a medical record data repository. Anemia was assessed using the last Hgb value prior to the fall date and defined as Hgb <12 g/dL for females or Hgb <13 g/dL for males. Statistics included T-tests, chi-square, and a linear regression analysis using length of stay (log transformed) after the fall date as the dependent variable and demographics, comorbidities, drug class, and anemia status as independent variables. RESULTS: There were 1518 patients that met study criteria. The mean age was 65 ±16 years, 49% were female, 81% were Caucasian, and 79% were anemic. Most patients (60%) fell within one week of hospital admission. Anemic patients were more likely to have chronic kidney disease (8% vs. 4%) and gastrointestinal diseases (20% vs. 8%). Drug utilization was similar except that anemic patients were less likely to receive anticonvulsants (20% vs. 26%). A linear regression analysis showed that patients who were younger (p=0.01), had cardiac arrhythmias (p<0.001), pneumonia (p<0.001), and gastrointestinal disease (p<0.001) and those receiving antihistamines (p=0.02) were more likely to have longer lengths of stay. CONCLUSION: The majority of patients experiencing an in-hospital fall were anemic, however, anemia did not contribute to increased length of stay.