Soccer's
Popularity Adds Injury Numbers for ER Visits
Over a 13-year period almost 1.6 million US children needed
to visit the emergency room due to soccer-related injuries, according to a
report in The American Journal of Sports Medicine.
The study included injuries that occurred during both organized
and non-organized soccer play.
Past research on soccer injuries has tended to focus on
pro players, injuries to specific body parts, and age- or gender-specific soccer
injuries. This study is the first to investigate soccer-related injuries among
the entire US pediatric population.
"Soccer is a relatively safe sport, especially compared
to other sports," says study author Christy Collins, Ph.D., at the Children's
Research Institute at Columbus Children's Hospital in Ohio.
"We want kids to play, but we also want them to be as safe
as possible," she says.
During the study period - 1990 to 2003 - the number of high
school students playing soccer more than doubled from 305,102 to 658,817, the
researchers note.
Dr. Collins says accurate estimates of how many younger
children are playing are harder to come by, because there is no national database
of soccer organizations.
However, the American Academy of
Pediatrics estimates that more than 11 percent of youngsters were
involved in youth soccer in 1990, and that this number rose to nearly 22
percent by 2003.
For the
study, Dr.
Collins and her colleagues examined data from the US Consumer Products Safety Commission National
Electronic Injury Surveillance System, which is made up of 100 nationally representative
hospital emergency departments.
They found that just under 1.6 million children between
the ages of two and 18 sustained soccer injuries serious enough to require
an emergency room visit during the study period.
Boys were the most likely to be injured, with nearly 59
percent of the injuries occurring in males. Youngsters between the ages of
10 and 14 had the highest rates of injuries, sustaining 49 percent of all injuries.
While boys sustained the majority of the injuries, the rate
of injuries rose faster among girls. The researchers suspect that this may
be because more girls are now playing soccer.
The most common injuries were to the hand, wrist, or fingers,
followed by ankle injuries and knee injuries. Girls were more likely to sustain
ankle and knee injuries and to have sprains or strains than boys.
In older players - those ages 15 to 18 - concussion was
the most common injury and often occurred due to collisions with other players
or from falling to the ground.
Even the youngest players were not immune to injuries. Children
ages two to four sustained more injuries to the face, head and neck than older
players.
The youngest players (especially boys) were also more likely
to be hospitalized for soccer injuries than their older counterparts.
“In general, younger children have great difficulty
expressing themselves in words,” says coauthor Christy Knox. “When
that child is injured, it seems prudent to hospitalize and observe that child.”
"This study is interesting, but it misses a whole group
of kids - those that go see a physician rather than head to the hospital for
their injuries," says Dr. Cynthia LaBella, at the Institute for Sports Medicine
at Children's Memorial Hospital in Chicago. "As a sports medicine provider,
I see a ton of injuries."
The bottom line, says Dr. Collins, is that injuries will
happen when kids play sports. But, many of these injuries can be prevented.
Both
Dr. Collins
and Dr. LaBella say that children should wear appropriate protective equipment,
depending on the sport. Playing
fields should also be even and well-maintained to prevent falls.
Children should be on teams that are not only age-appropriate
but size-appropriate. The majority of injuries occurred in the 10- to 14-year-old
age group, a time when there is a great variation in children's sizes.
Both experts suggested that parents talk with the coach
and make sure their approach matches your child's - for example, whether your
child is competitive or just out for some recreational fun.
Dr. LaBella stresses that children should never play through
pain.
"Kids aren't little adults," she says. "They
need to give their body time to recover. Kids shouldn't push through pain.
Pain is a sign
of overuse or an injury."
Always consult your physician for more information.
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