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National study finds increase in football-related injuries among youth
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Investigators with the Center for Injury Research and Policy of The Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital reported a 27% increase in football-related injuries among adolescents between 6 and 17 years of age between the years of 1990 and 2007.
According to a Nationwide Children’s Hospital press release, the annual number of football-related injuries increased from 274,094 in 1990 to 346,772 in 2007.
“We found that nearly 2,000 pediatric and adolescent football-related injuries were treated every day in emergency departments during football season,” study co-author Lara McKenzie, PhD, stated in the release. “We need to do a better job of preventing football-related injuries among our young athletes.”
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Inclusion of unorganized play
Previously published studies, McKenzie’s group wrote in the study abstract, have focused primarily on organized football and neglected injuries that occurred in unorganized play. The investigators in this study — published in Clinical Pediatrics — used the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System database to identify football-related injuries, using sample weights to calculate national estimates.
“An estimated 5,252,721 children and adolescents 6 to 17 years old were treated in U.S. emergency departments for football-related injuries,” the authors wrote, adding that the annual number of cases increased by 26.5% during the 18-year study period. Patients in the 12- to 17-year age group accounted for 77.8% of all injuries and were nearly twice as likely to sustain concussions.
“Prevention and treatment of concussions are the focus of many discussions at every level of play — from the junior level all the way up to the National Football League,” McKenzie stated. “Every day during football season, an average of 57 six- to 17-year-olds are treated in U.S. emergency departments for football-related concussions. The potential long-term consequences of this type of injury make this an unacceptably high number.”
The most common reported injuries were strains (31%), fractures and dislocations (28%), and soft tissue injuries (24%).
The findings, the authors report, point out the need for further prevention efforts so as to minimize the risk of football-related injuries in children and adolescents.
Reference:
- Nation AD, Nelson NG, Yard EE, et al. Football-related injuries among 6- to 17-year-olds treated in US emergency departments, 1990-2007. Clin Pediatr. Published online before print December 2, 2010, doi: 10.1177/0009922810388511.
- www.nationwidechildrens.org
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