(Radio Iowa) – A national study shows falls from tree stands are now the leading cause of injury for deer hunters, even exceeding the risk of gunshot wounds. With more than 100-thousand deer hunters predicted in Iowa this season, an expert is offering suggestions to help even the odds. Megan Anderson, an injury prevention coordinator at Emplify Health by Gundersen, says one of the top causes of tree stand falls is human error, where a hunter simply loses their balance.

Falls from tree stands can be fatal, though she says hunters are more likely to survive.

She says Iowa deer hunters should consider taking some simple precautions that could help to prevent this type of fall from a tree stand.

When a hunter gets in place, she says it’s wise to check for cell reception, and if there’s no signal, to consider carrying a two-way radio in case there’s a problem. While higher might be better in some situations, Anderson says tree stands don’t have to be towering above everything else in the woods, as lower is safer.

Studies find more than 80 percent of firearm hunters and 90 percent of bow hunters hunt from a tree stand or an elevated position.

Emplify Health by Gundersen has clinics in Calmar, Decorah, Fayette, Lansing, Postville and Waukon, and a hospital in West Union.