National study finds youth baseball-related injuries down 25 percentMay 27, 2009Despite the decrease, additional opportunities for injury prevention remain Spring marks baseball season for more than 19 million children and adolescents who play each year as part of a team or in backyards throughout the United States. The good news for these players is that the number of injuries from the sport is on the decline. A new study by the Center for Injury Research and Policy of The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital found that the number of children and adolescents treated for baseball-related injuries in hospital emergency departments decreased 25 percent from 1994 through 2006 - going from an estimated 147,000 injuries in 1994 to approximately 111,000 injuries in 2006. This is the first national study of youth baseball injuries requiring emergency treatment, and is now available online in the June electronic issue of Pediatrics. "Although baseball injuries have declined, the consistently high numbers of injuries requiring emergency treatment highlight the importance of increasing our prevention efforts," said study co-author Gary Smith, MD, DrPH, director of the Center for Injury Research and Policy at Nationwide Children's Hospital, and an associate professor of pediatrics at The Ohio State University College of Medicine. According to the study, being hit by the baseball was the most common mechanism of injury (46 percent of injuries), followed by being hit with the bat (25 percent). The most common types of injuries were soft tissue injuries (34 percent) followed by fractures and dislocations (20 percent). The face (34 percent) and the upper extremities (32 percent) were the most commonly injured body regions. One possible reason for the decrease in injuries may be the greater use of protective equipment. "Safety equipment such as age-appropriate breakaway bases, helmets with properly-fitted face shields, mouth guards and reduced-impact safety baseballs have all been shown to reduce injuries," said Dr. Smith. "As more youth leagues, coaches and parents ensure the use of these types of safety equipment in both practices and games, the number of baseball-related injuries should continue to decrease. Mouth guards, in particular, should be more widely used in youth baseball." Nationwide Children's Hospital |
|||||||||||||||||||||
| Related Injuries Current Events and Injuries News Articles New stem cell technology developed at Hebrew University A novel technology involving use of stem cells, developed by Hebrew University of Jerusalem researchers, has been applied to provide better and rapid healing for patients suffering from complicated bone fractures. Naked mole rats may hold clues to surviving stroke Blind, nearly hairless, and looking something like toothy, plump, pink fingers, naked mole rats may rank among nature's most maligned creatures, but their unusual physiology endears them to scientists. More than 1,000 patients in US admitted annually for aviation-related injuries The first ever published study of aviation-related injuries and deaths in the U.S. finds that more than 1,013 patients are admitted to U.S. hospitals with aviation-related injuries annually, and that 753 aviation-deaths occur each year. Study shows new brain connections form rapidly during motor learning New connections begin to form between brain cells almost immediately as animals learn a new task, according to a study published this week in Nature. Saving the single cysteine: new antioxidant system found We've all read studies about the health benefits of having a life partner. The same thing is true at the molecular level, where amino acids known as cysteines are much more vulnerable to damage when single than when paired up with other cysteines. Laser therapy can aggravate skin cancer High irradiances of low-level laser therapy (LLLT) should not be used over melanomas. Reflux esophagitis due to immune reaction, not acute acid burn, UT Southwestern researchers report Contrary to current thinking, a condition called gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) might not develop as a direct result of acidic digestive juices burning the esophagus, UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have found in an animal study. Drug studied as possible treatment for spinal injuries Researchers have shown how an experimental drug might restore the function of nerves damaged in spinal cord injuries by preventing short circuits caused when tiny "potassium channels" in the fibers are exposed. Pushing the brain to find new pathways Until recently, scientists believed that, following a stroke, a patient had about six months to regain any lost function. After that, patients would be forced to compensate for the lost function by focusing on their remaining abilities. Talking to ourselves: How consumers navigate choices and inner conflict From simple decisions like "Should I eat this brownie?" to bigger questions such as "Should my next car be a hybrid?" consumers are involved in an inner dialogue that reflects thoughts and perspectives of their different selves, according to the authors of a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research. More Injuries Current Events and Injuries News Articles |
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||