Sports-Related
Injuries Cause 2.6 Million Visits Annually
by Children and Young Adults to Emergency Rooms
Embargoed For
Release
Monday, March 5, 2001
Contact: NCHS Press Office
(301) 458-4800
CDC Office of Media Relations (404) 639-3286
E-mail: paoquery@cdc.gov
Sports-related injuries
in children and young adults cause 2.6 million visits to the nation’s
hospital emergency departments for a cost of about $500 million annually,
according to the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey’s data
for 1997 and 1998. Results from the survey conducted by CDC’s National
Center for Health Statistics are published in the March 2001 issue of the Annals
of Emergency Medicine.
Sports-related injury
visits to emergency departments were more frequent for persons five to 24
years of age. They represented over two thirds of the total amount of
sports injury visits (3.7 million for all ages). Sports injuries result in
33.9 emergency visits per 1,000 persons 5-24 years old, and account for
almost one out of every four injury visits to emergency departments by
this age group. The visit rate was twice as high for males as females.
"Protecting our
children from injuries is the key," said CDC Director Jeffrey P.
Koplan, MD, MPH. "Helmets, the right equipment, better safety
practices and instruction can all help reduce these preventable and
oftentimes serious injuries. Participation in sports and recreation games
and activities should lead to better health and greater physical fitness,
not a visit to the emergency department," he said.
For children and young
adults, injuries associated with basketball and cycling – almost 900,000
a year – are the most frequent sports-related injuries seen in the
nation’s emergency departments. Football and baseball are associated
with about one-quarter million visits each, and soccer injuries result in
about 100,000 visits. These findings don’t indicate that these sports
are necessarily more dangerous; there may be just more people engaging in
these activities.
In addition to pedal
cycling, other sports that frequently result in emergency visits by
persons 5-24 years of age include ice or roller skating and skate boarding
(150,000 visits), gymnastics and cheerleading (146,000 visits), and water
and snow sports (100,000 visits each). Injuries on the playground account
for about 137,000 emergency visits yearly.
Sports-related injuries
are more likely than other injuries to be to the brain or skull and upper
and lower extremities; more likely to be a fracture, strain or sprain; and
more likely to have diagnostic and therapeutic services provided,
especially orthopedic care.
CDC protects people’s
health and safety by preventing and controlling diseases and injuries;
enhances health decisions by providing credible information on critical
health issues; and promotes healthy living through strong partnerships
with local, national and international organizations.