Pediatric TBI - rapidly growing health issue in the US (and worldwide)

June 9, 2019

TBI-related Emergency Department Visits, Hospitalizations, and Deaths (EDHDs)

In 2014, there were approximately 2.87 million TBI-EDHDs in the United States, including over 837,000 occurring among children. This includes:

• Approximately 2.53 million TBI-related ED visits, including over 812,00 occurring among children.

• Approximately 288,000 TBI-related hospitalizations, including over 23,000 occurring among children.

• 56,800 TBI-related deaths, including 2,529 occurring among children.

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An estimated 283,000 children seek care in U.S. emergency departments each year for a sports- or recreation-related traumatic brain injury (SRR-TBI), according to a new MMWR Report. The article, Emergency Department Visits for Sports and Recreation-Related Traumatic Brain Injuries Among Children—United States, 2010-2016, also found that contact sports contributed to nearly half (45%) of the SRR-TBI visits examined. Activities with the highest number of SRR-TBI visits included: football, bicycling, basketball, playground activities, and soccer.

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In 2018 the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Center for Injury Prevention and Control Division of Unintentional Injury Prevention submitted a report to congress outlining the crisis and the challenges facing TBI survivors and their families - get the report and read more to learn about this epidemic and national health crisis.