Sports-related injuries in school-aged children.
Most studies of sports-related injuries have been investigations of specific injuries resulting from specific, organized sports at the high school, college, or professional level. This study documented all types of sports-related injuries received by all school-aged children in a midwestern community of 100,000 for a 1-year period. Public and private schools, community sports programs, hospital emergency rooms, the schools' accident insurance company, and local physicians provided initial accident reports. Injuries were sustained by 3% of all elementary school students, 7% of all junior high school (grades 7 and 8) students, and 11% of all high school students. Nonorganized sports and physical education classes each produced nearly twice as many injuries as organized sports. One-fifth of the injuries were considered serious and one-fourth of all injuries could have been avoided had nominal safety precautions been observed.
D000293:Adolescent; D000367:Age Factors; D001265:Athletic Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010806:Physical Education and Training; D012306:Risk; D012449:Safety; D012737:Sex Factors; D014481:United States