(ABC 12) – Almost 2 million children and teens — an average of 283,000 each year — were seen in emergency rooms across the United States for traumatic brain injuries between 2010 and 2016, according to a new government report.
Football, bicycling, basketball, playground activities and soccer were the sports and activities most likely to send children to emergency rooms for TBIs, according to the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report published Thursday by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Traumatic brain injuries, which include concussions, are caused by impacts to the head or the body. The issue has become more pressing as youth sports have grown in popularity and because research has shown that repeated blows to the head, such as from playing football or heading a soccer ball, can lead to long-term physical, emotional and cognitive consequences in children and teens. CONTINUE