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Sports-related injuries in children
1Department of Emergency Medicine, Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children, Wilmington, DE, USA. btaylor@nemours.org
Summary
Pediatric sports-related injuries (SRIs) are common, with boys experiencing more than girls. Basketball, football, and baseball cause the most injuries, primarily sprains, strains, and fractures, often to the wrist, head, or ankle.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Emergency Medicine
- Sports Medicine
- Public Health
Background:
- Sports-related injuries (SRIs) are a significant concern in pediatric populations.
- Understanding the demographics and injury patterns is crucial for prevention and management.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe the demographics and types of sports-related injuries (SRIs) in children aged 5-18 years.
- To identify common sports, injury mechanisms, locations, and types associated with SRIs.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective chart review of pediatric emergency department (ED) visits for SRIs over two years.
- Data collection included patient demographics, sport, injury details, and mechanism.
- Statistical analysis involved pairwise comparisons using odds ratios and confidence intervals.
Main Results:
- Six hundred seventy-seven SRIs were analyzed; 71% affected males. Mean age was 13.0 years for males and 12.4 for females.
- Top sports included basketball (19.5%), football (17.1%), baseball/softball (14.9%), and soccer (14.2%).
- Sprains/strains (32.0%) and fractures (29.4%) were most common. Wrist/hand (28%) and head/face (22%) were frequent injury locations. Contact mechanisms predominated.
Conclusions:
- Pediatric SRIs exhibit diverse sex, age, mechanism, location, and injury type differences across various sports.
- Findings highlight the need for sport-specific injury prevention strategies in children.