According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Injury Center:

Appropriate diagnosis and management of children and teens with mild traumatic brain injury (TBI), including concussion, can help safeguard the health of young Americans.

During the last decade, emergency department visits for sports and recreation-related TBIs, including concussions, increased by 60 percent among children and adolescents (from birth to 19 years). Bicycling, football, playground activities, basketball, and soccer are the most common activities involved. One reason for the increase may be a result of the growing awareness among parents and coaches, and the public as a whole, about the need for individuals with a suspected TBI to be seen by a health care professional.

CDC’s newly released report, Nonfatal Traumatic Brain Injuries Related to Sports and Recreation Activities Among Persons Aged ≤19 Years — United States, 2001–2009, published in the October 7th issue of CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, shows that the number of sports- and recreation-related TBI emergency department visits varied by age group and gender:

• 71.0 percent of all visits were among males
• 70.5 percent of visits were among persons aged 10-19 years
• Children aged 0-9 years commonly sustained injuries during playground activities or while bicycling.