Sports Safety - Injury Statistics and Incidence Rates
The following statistics are the latest available from the National SAFE KIDS Campaign and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP):
Injury rates:
- More than 3.5 million children ages 14 and under get hurt annually playing sports or participating in recreational activities.
- Although death from a sports injury is rare, the leading cause of death from a sports-related injury is a brain injury.
- Sports and recreational activities contribute to approximately 21 percent of all traumatic brain injuries among American children.
- The majority of head injuries sustained in sports or recreational activities occur during bicycling, skateboarding, or skating incidents.
- More than 775,000 children ages 14 and under are treated in hospital emergency rooms for sports-related injuries each year. Most of the injuries occurred as a result of falls, being struck by an object, collisions, and overexertion during unorganized or informal sports activities.
Where and when:
- Playground, sports, and bicycle-related injuries occur most often among young children, between the ages of 5 and 9 years old.
- The highest rates of injury occur in sports that involve contact and collisions.
- More severe injuries occur in individual sports and recreational activities.
- Most organized sports-related injuries (62 percent) occur during practice.
Who:
- More than 30 million high school children participate in organized sports.
- Children between 5 and 14 years of age account for almost half (40 percent) of sports-related injuries for all age groups.
- Children who are less developed than a more mature child of the same age and weight are at increased risk for injury.
- Sports-related injury severity increases with age.
- Before puberty, girls suffer more sports injuries than boys.
- During puberty, boys suffer more injuries more severely than girls.
- Children who are just beginning a sport or activity are at greater risk for injury.
Types of sports and recreational activities:
Consider the following statistics:
- basketball
In 2000, more than 193,000 children ages 5 to 14 were treated in hospital emergency rooms for basketball-related injuries.
- baseball and softball
In 2000, nearly 99,000 children ages 5 to 14 were treated in hospital emergency rooms for baseball-related injuries. Baseball also has the highest fatality rate among sports for children ages 5 to 14, with three to four children dying from baseball injuries each year.
- bicycling
In 2000, more than 373,000 children ages 5 to 14 were treated in hospital emergency rooms for bicycle-related injuries. In addition, 173 children ages 14 and under died in bicycle-related crashes in 1999.
- football
In 2000, almost 186,000 children ages 5 to 14 were treated in hospital emergency rooms for football-related injuries.
- ice skating
In 2000, more than 14,000 children ages 5 to 14 were treated in hospital emergency rooms for ice skating-related injuries.
- in-line skating/roller skating
Since 1992, 39 children ages 14 and under have died from in-line skating injuries, mostly from collisions with motor vehicles. In 2000, nearly 58,000 children ages 5 to 14 were treated in hospital emergency rooms for in-line skating-related injuries. In 2000, nearly 27,000 children ages 5 to 14 were treated in hospital emergency rooms for roller-skating-related injuries.
- skateboarding
In 2000, nearly 50,000 children ages 5 to 14 were treated in hospital emergency rooms for skateboarding-related injuries.
- sledding
In 2000, nearly 23,500 children ages 5 to 14 were treated in hospital emergency rooms for sledding-related injuries.
- snow skiing/snowboarding
In 2000, more than 18,500 children ages 5 to 14 were treated in hospital emergency rooms for snow skiing-related injuries. Another 24,700 children ages 5 to 14 were treated in hospital emergency rooms for snowboarding-related injuries.
- soccer
In 1999, approximately 85,000 children ages 5 to 14 were treated in hospital emergency rooms for soccer-related injuries.
- trampolines
In 2000, nearly 82,000 children ages 14 and under were treated in hospital emergency rooms for trampoline-related injuries. Most trampoline injuries occur at home (90 percent) and involve injury to a child's extremities.
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