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THURSDAY, March 14, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Annually, an average of 283,000 children aged younger than 18 years seek care in emergency departments for sports- and recreation-related traumatic brain injuries (SRR-TBIs), according to research published in the March 15 issue of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report<\/i>.<\/p>\n
Kelly Sarmiento, M.P.H., from the CDC in Atlanta, and colleagues analyzed data from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System-All Injury Program for SRR-TBI emergency department visits during 2010 to 2016.<\/p>\n
The researchers found that each year, an average of 283,000 children aged younger than 18 years sought care in emergency departments for SRR-TBI, with overall rates leveling off in recent years. Boys and children aged 10 to 14 and 15 to 17 years had the highest rates. About 45 percent of all SRR-TBI emergency department visits were due to TBIs sustained in contact sports. Football, bicycling, basketball, playground activities, and soccer were associated with the highest numbers of emergency department visits.<\/p>\n
“TBIs in sports and recreational activities remain a significant public health problem,” the authors write. “Development and testing of evidence-based interventions tailored for individual noncontact sports and recreation activities are warranted to ensure that children can stay healthy and active.”<\/p>\n